Session 1.

Properties of Matter

General Chemistry 1
Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics
What is the first thing you notice when you hold
and read a book?

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Is it hard or soft?
Is it thick or thin?
Is it heavy or light?
Does it burn when
you place it near a
flame?

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The notable
characteristics of the
book are known as
its properties.
This lesson tackles
the different
properties of matter.
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What properties are
common in all forms of
matter?

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 Learning Competencies
At the end of the lesson, you should be able to do the following:

● Distinguish between physical and chemical

properties and give examples (STEM_GC11MP-
Ia-b-3).

● Distinguish between extensive and intensive

properties and give examples (STEM_GC11MP-
Ia-b-4).

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 Learning Objectives
At the end of the lesson, you should be able to do the following:

● Enumerate the general properties of matter.

● Distinguish between physical and chemical
properties of matter.
● Enumerate physical and chemical properties of
matter.

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 Learning Objectives
At the end of the lesson, you should be able to do the following:

● Distinguish between extensive and intensive

properties of matter.
● Enumerate extensive and intensive properties of
matter.

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 Matter

Matter is anything that occupies space and has mass.

● General properties of matter:

○ mass
○ weight
○ volume
○ density
○ specific gravity

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 General Properties of Matter

Mass
Mass is the amount of matter in an object

The more matter is present in an object means the greater

its mass.

It is usually expressed in grams (g) or kilograms (kg)

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 General Properties of Matter

Mass
Materials that are compact
have relatively greater mass
than those with a hollow
interior.

Which one has more mass

between a block of wood and
a ball?
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 General Properties of Matter

Weight
It is the measure of force that acts on an object.

It is expressed as the amount of matter (mass) multiplied

by the gravitational force that acts on it.
○ The greater the gravitational force that acts on an
object, the “heavier” it weighs.

It is expressed in newtons (N).

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 Mass vs. Weight

“Mass and weight are

often interchangeable,
but these are two
different quantities.”

A comparison of astronaut’s mass and weight on earth and

on the moon 13
 General Properties of Matter

Volume
It is the amount of space occupied by matter

It can be measured using instruments with graduations or

by getting the dimensions of the object.

It is expressed in liters (L) for liquids, or cubic length (l3)

for solids.

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 General Properties of Matter

Volume

Pouring a liquid in a graduated cylinder can measure its volume (left) while measuring
and multiplying the dimensions of a cube will determine its volume (right).
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 General Properties of Matter

Density
It is the ratio between mass and volume.

It is expressed in kilograms per cubic meter (kg/m3) or

grams per cubic centimeter (g/cm3).

It tells how compact an object is.

○ An object with greater mass has more compact
particles than the lighter ones.
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 General Properties of Matter

Specific Gravity
It is the ratio of a substance’s density to a standard
substance.

It is also known as relative density.

It is a dimensionless quantity.

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 General Properties of Matter

Specific Gravity

Water at 4 oC, which is at its densest, is commonly used as

a standard for comparison of liquids and solids.

Air at room temperature (20 oC) is the usual standard for

comparison of gases.

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How can you distinguish
physical from chemical
properties of matter?

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 Physical Properties

Physical Properties
These are qualities that are readily observable or
measurable without changing the matter’s composition.

General properties such as mass, volume, weight,

density, and specific gravity are all examples of physical
properties.

These are often used to describe or observe matter.

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Physical Properties

Can you give other examples of physical properties?

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 Physical Properties

● melting point ● size

● boiling point ● texture
● freezing point ● shape
● solubility ● color
● metallic properties

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 Physical Properties

Melting Point
It is the temperature at
which a solid matter
changes to liquid.

It varies according to its

composition of materials.

An ice cream melting

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 Physical Properties

Freezing Point
It is the temperature at
which a liquid turns into a
solid matter.

Water freezing into a snowflake

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 Physical Properties

Boiling Point
It is the temperature at
which liquid evaporates

The vapor pressure is equal

to the pressure of its
surrounding liquid at this
temperature.
The formation of bubbles in a heated
liquid indicates that it is starting to boil.
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 Physical Properties

Solubility
It is the ability of a solute to dissolve in a
given solvent.

It varies depending on its composition.

It is considered as a physical property as

one can tell whether a material is soluble
or not by merely observing its physical A spoonful of sugar
appearance. is soluble in water.26
 Physical Properties

Metallic Properties
These are qualities that are observed specifically in
metals.
○ conductivity
○ malleability
○ ductility

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 Physical Properties

Conductivity
It is the ability of a
material to allow heat or
electric charges to pass
through easily.

Materials can be copper wire aluminum pot

thermal or electrical
conductors.
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 Physical Properties

Malleability
It is the ability of a material to be
flattened into thin sheets.

Ductility
It is the ability of a material to be
easily drawn into wires. gold ring

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How can physical properties of
matter distinguish one
substance from another?

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Remember

Qualities that are readily observable

or measurable without changing the
matter’s composition are known as
physical properties.

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 Chemical Properties

● These are the characteristics that can only be seen

when the chemical identity of a material is altered.

● These become evident when a material undergoes a

chemical change.

● These highly depend on its composition.

● Some examples are biodegradability, combustibility,

flammability, and reactivity. 32
 Chemical Properties

Biodegradability
It is the capacity of a material to decompose through the
actions of microorganisms.

It is observed when a material undergoes decomposition.

○ Organic materials or carbon-based materials have
a higher biodegradability compared to the
synthetic ones.

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 Biodegradability

Approximate time for common materials to decompose in marine and

terrestrial environments

Time to Decompose
Materials
Marine Environment Terrestrial Environment

paper towel 2 to 4 weeks 1 to 2 weeks

apple core 2 months 4 to 6 weeks

tin cans 50 to 100 years

aluminum cans 200 years 80 to 100 years

plastic bags 500 years to forever 34

 Chemical Properties

Combustion
It is a chemical reaction
between a substance (fuel) and
oxygen which results in the
generation of heat and light in
the form of flame.
A tip of matchstick burning

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 Chemical Properties

Combustibility
It is the ability of a material to combust or burn.

Flammability
It is the ability of a combustible material to catch flame
easily.

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 Chemical Properties

Combustibility and Flammability

main difference between the two properties: ease and
rate of how an object burns.

Not all combustible materials are flammable.

○ A block of wood may only burn when exposed to a
specific amount of heat and oxygen, but putting a
flame near it will not necessarily make it burn
instantly.
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Combustibility and Flammability

“Not all combustible

materials are
flammable.”

burning wood 38
 Chemical Properties

Reactivity
It is the tendency of a substance to
undergo a chemical reaction.

It depends on the chemical structure

and composition of the substance.
○ fluorine: most reactive element
Platinum is one of the
○ noble gases: no to little least reactive metals.
reactivity
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How can chemical properties of
matter distinguish one
substance from another?

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Remember

The characteristics that can only be

seen when the chemical identity of a
material is altered are known as
chemical properties.

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 Physical Properties of Matter

● These may be further classified as intensive or

extensive.

● These are based on whether a physical property

depends on the amount of matter or not.

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How will you differentiate
intensive from extensive
properties of matter?

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 Intensive Properties

These properties do not depend

on the amount of matter.

Examples:
○ color
○ density
○ boiling point
Sugar remains white regardless
○ melting/freezing point of its amount or size. 44
 Extensive Properties

These properties depend on

the amount of matter.

Examples:
○ mass
○ volume

Powdered sugar takes up more

space than sugar cubes. 45
Remember

Physical properties of matter may be

categorized as intensive or extensive
based on its dependence on the
amount of matter.

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 Check Your Understanding

Tell whether the statement is true or false.

1. General properties of matter are characteristics that are

specific to a certain kind of material.
2. Chemical properties may only be observed when a
material undergoes a chemical change.
3. Combustibility is a property that is readily observable
even without changing the chemical identity of the
material being observed.
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 Let’s Sum It Up!

● The characteristics of matter that are present to

all kinds of matter are known as general
properties of matter.
● Qualities that are readily observable or
measurable without changing the matter’s
composition are known as physical properties.
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 Let’s Sum It Up!

● Physical properties of matter may be further

classified based on whether it depends on the
amount of matter.
○ Intensive properties are physical properties
that do not depend on the amount of matter.
○ Extensive properties are physical properties
that depend on the amount of matter. 49
 Let’s Sum It Up!

● The characteristics that can only be seen when

the chemical identity of a material is altered are
known as chemical properties.

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Let’s Sum It Up!

Extensive Intensive

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Photo Credits

● Slide 24. SaltinWaterSolutionLiquid, by Chris 73 is licensed under CC BY 3.0 via

Wikimedia Commons.

● Slide 37. Platinum-nugget, by Alchemist-hp is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via

Wikimedia Commons.

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Bibliography

Chang, Raymond, and Kenneth A. Goldsby. General Chemistry: the Essential Concepts. New York:
McGraw-Hill, 2014.

Handwerker, Mark J. Science Essentials. San Francisco, CA.: Jossey-Bass, 2005.

Hawe, Alan, Dan Davies, Kendra McMahon, Lee Towler, Chris Collier, and Tonie Scott. Science 5–11: A
Guide for Teachers. 2nd ed. New York, NY: David Fulton Publishers, 2009.

Petrucci, Ralph H. General Chemistry: Principles and Modern Applications. Toronto, Ont.: Pearson
Canada, 2011. Print.

Silberberg, Martin S. Principles of General Chemistry. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2013.

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