Practice tests with

solutions

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Kinetic Theory and Diffusion

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ACTIVITIES

1.1. Benzene melts at 5.5C and boils at 80.1C. Which one of the following
statements is true about benzene?
A The only movement that the particles in benzene have at a temperature of 20C
is vibration about a fixed point.
B

At 100C, the particles in benzene are well scattered and moving at random.

At 0C, benzene is a liquid.

D If you cooled benzene from 100C to 50C, the change of state that happens at
80.1C is called sublimation.

1.2. Choose the word from the list below that best describes the change of state
which happens when a purple vapour turns into a purple solid on cooling.
A

freezing

sublimation

condensation

evaporation

1.3. Choose the word from the list below that best describes the change of state
which happens when a few drops of water on a bench gradually disappear.
A

freezing

sublimation

condensation

evaporation

1.4. Choose the word from the list below that best describes the change of state
which happens when colourless liquid naphthalene turns into white crystals.
A

freezing

sublimation

condensation

evaporation

1.5. Which one of the following statements about particles in solids, and liquids is
not true?

A When a solid is heated, the particles vibrate faster and faster until the forces
holding them together are broken, and they become free to move around.
B Particles in a liquid are quite closely packed, but have some freedom to move
around.
C When a liquid is heated, the heat energy makes the particles lighter, which is
why they escape more easily from the surface of a hot liquid than a cold one.
D For most substances, the particles in the liquid are slightly further apart than
they are in the solid, and so the liquid is less dense than the solid.

1.6. The relative masses of the particles of four gases are:

helium 4
64

methane 16

oxygen 32

sulfur dioxide

The gas which diffuses most quickly is

A

helium

methane

oxygen

sulfur dioxide

1.7. Experiments show that if some brown bromine vapour is released into a large
flask which is full of air, the colour spreads evenly through the flask over a minute
or so. However, if the bromine is released into the same flask which contains a
vacuum, the colour fills the whole flask in a fraction of a second. The reason for this
is
A Bromine particles travel at about 200 metres per second in a vacuum, but only
100 metres per second through the air.
B Bromine particles are heavier than air particles, and heavy particles move more
slowly than lighter ones.
C

The vacuum sucks the bromine into it.

D In air, bromine particles keep bumping into air particles which slows the process
down. In a vacuum, nothing gets in their way.

1.8. This question is about an experiment to find out the relative speeds at which
the gases ammonia and hydrogen chloride diffuse.

Which one of the following statements is not true?

A

Hydrogen chloride particles travel faster than ammonia particles.

B The white ring is solid ammonium chloride produced where the ammonia and
hydrogen chloride meet.
C

Ammonia particles are lighter than hydrogen chloride particles.

The time taken for the white ring to form will depend on the length of the tube.

1.9. Crystals of potassium manganate(VII) are deep purple, and produce a rich
purple solution in water. If you drop some crystals into a beaker of water, eventually
the whole solution becomes evenly purple. Which one of the following processes is
not happening in the beaker?
A Particles of potassium manganate(VII) are breaking away from the crystal and
moving between the water particles, eventually reaching all parts of the liquid.
B

The water particles are close together, but moving around.

The potassium manganate(VII) melts to give liquid potassium manganate(VII).

D Some water particles are breaking away from the surface of the solution to form
water vapour.

1.10. Sometimes, before an injection, for example, a doctor or nurse might clean
your skin by rubbing it with some alcohol. This often feels very cold, even though it
is at room temperature. The reason for this is
A Alcohol has slow moving particles, and slow moving particles are colder than
fast moving ones.
B As the alcohol evaporates, heat is needed to break the attractions between the
particles. This heat is taken from your skin.
C

This has nothing to do with particles. It is a reaction caused by fear of injections.

The alcohol freezes in contact with your skin.

ACTIVITIES
2.1. Which one of the following statements is true for all elements?
Neutral atoms of the same element contain
A

equal numbers of protons and neutrons.

equal numbers of protons and electrons.

equal numbers of neutrons and electrons.

equal numbers of protons, neutrons and electrons.

2.2. Which one of the following statements about the isotopes of a particular
element is wrong?
All the isotopes of a particular element have neutral atoms having
A

the same atomic number.

the same number of protons.

the same number of neutrons.

the same number of electrons.

2.3. You will need to refer to a copy of the Periodic Table to answer this question.
Which one of the following elements has the electronic structure in this diagram?
A

beryllium

fluorine

neon

chlorine

2.4. You will need to refer to a copy of the Periodic Table to answer this question.
Which one of the following electronic structures represents sulfur?
A

2,8,6

2,8,8,8,6

2,8,18,4

2,6,8

2.5. You may need to refer to a copy of the Periodic Table to answer this question.
Which one of the following electronic structures does not represent a noble gas?
A

2,8

2,8,18,8

2,8,8,2

2.6. You will need to refer to a copy of the Periodic Table to answer this question.
Which one of the statements about an atom with an atomic number of 17, and a
mass number of 35 is wrong?
A

The atom is an isotope of chlorine.

The electronic structure is 2,8,7.

The atom contains 17 neutrons.

D It is an isotope of the same element as one with an atomic number of 17 and a

mass number of 37.

2.7. You will need to refer to a copy of the Periodic Table to answer this question.
Which one of the following lists of electronic structures consists only of atoms of
elements in the same Group of the Periodic Table?
A

2,8,1

2,8,2

2,8,3

2,1

2,8,1

2,7

2,8,1

2,8,5

2,2

2,8,2

2,8,8,2

2.8. You will need to refer to a copy of the Periodic Table to answer this question.
How many electrons are there in the outer level of a strontium atom? The atomic
number of strontium is 38.
A

2.9. A particle consisted of a nucleus with 11 protons and 12 neutrons. Around the
outside of it were 10 electrons arranged in two levels: 2,8. Which one of the
following statements is not true?
A

The mass number of the particle is 23.

The particle isnt a neutral atom. It has a charge of +1.

The particle has a noble gas structure of its electrons.

The particle is a neon atom.

2.10. This question contains information which is new to you.

Uranium-235, an isotope of uranium with a mass number of 235 and an atomic
number of 92, is radioactive. It has an unstable nucleus which loses an alphaparticle. Alpha-particles consist of 2 protons and 2 neutrons. Which one of the
following isotopes is produced during this process in addition to the alpha-particle?
A

uranium-231

radium-231 (the atomic number of radium is 88)

thorium-231 (the atomic number of thorium is 90)

plutonium-231 (the atomic number of plutonium is 94)

Chapter 1 Kinetic Theory and Diffusion

1.1. Answer: B
Comment
If you look at the melting and boiling temperatures, benzene is a solid up to 5.5C. It is
a liquid from 5.5C to 80.1C, and then a gas above that.
A is wrong because the description of the movement of the particles is for a solid, and
at 20C, benzene would be a liquid.
B describes a gas, and benzene would be a gas at 100C thats the right answer.
C is wrong because it would be a solid at this temperature.
Sublimation is a change from solid to gas and vice versa. In D, we are going from gas
to liquid, and so thats wrong.

1.2. Answer: B
Comment
The change from a vapour straight to a solid is sublimation. You just have to know
that.

1.3. Answer: D
Comment
This is a simple question, and normal everyday use of words tells you that it is
evaporation.

1.4. Answer: A
Comment
A change of state from liquid to solid is freezing. It doesnt matter how complicated
the solid is the word applies to naphthalene just as much as to water.

1.5. Answer: C
Comment
Be very careful when you are asked to choose an answer which is not true, especially
if you are used to questions asking you for a true answer. It is very easy to fall into the

trap of choosing the first answer you come to which sounds correct. But you dont
want a correct answer you want the untrue one.
In this case, A, B and D are all correct statements, but C isnt. Heating a particle up
gives it energy and makes it move faster (which is why the particles escape more
easily from the surface of a hot liquid), but it has no effect whatsoever on the mass of
the particles. It doesnt make them lighter, and thats why C is the incorrect
statement.

1.6. Answer: A
Comment
You have to know that light particles diffuse faster than heavier ones. The lightest
particle you are given is helium,
Incidentally, if you had to guess this, it doesnt make sense to guess either methane or
oxygen. The question implies that speed of diffusion has something to do with the
mass of the particles, in which case the correct answer is going to be either the
lightest one or the heaviest one. To choose an in between answer is just silly.

1.7. Answer: D
Comment
A is wrong on two counts. If the figures you were given were true, then the bromine
would diffuse twice as fast in a vacuum as in air. If you look at the question, the
difference is much, much greater than that. Secondly, the speed of a particle depends
on its temperature, not what is around it. There has to be a better explanation than
this.
B is tricky! The statement is entirely true, but it isnt a reason for the descriptions
given in the question. Dont fall into this sort of trap.
C is the sort of answer which would be given by someone who knows no science!
Particles in gases are moving around at random. What can possibly suck them into a
space? Sucking implies a pulling movement, and there is nothing to do the pulling.
D is the correct answer.

1.8. Answer: A
Comment
Start with B. This is true the white ring is ammonium chloride formed from the
reaction between ammonia and hydrogen chloride gases. You have just got to know
that. Why is it closer to the hydrochloric acid end of the tube? Because the ammonia
has travelled further in the time. That implies that the ammonia particles travel faster

than the hydrogen chloride ones. That means that A looks like the wrong statement
you need.
But you need to check the other two statements as well. Ammonia particles travel
faster because they are lighter, and so C is a true statement and you are looking for
a false one. D is obviously also true. If you had a tube a kilometre long it is going to
take a very much longer time for the ring to form than if it was 10 cm long.
So A is the only untrue statement.

1.9. Answer: C
Comment
A, B and D are all true statements. If A wasnt true, you wouldnt get colour evenly
spread through the solution. B is a simple statement of the arrangement of particles in
a liquid, and D describes the fact that water will tend to evaporate.
That leaves C. This is false because of the use of the words melts and liquid. A solid
melts if you heat it and a liquid is formed. In this case, you arent heating it. The solid
is dissolving to form a solution, and thats not the same thing as melting to form a
liquid. You have to be careful to use your words in the proper scientific sense.

1.10. Answer: B
Comment
The correct answer is B. Evaporation needs energy to overcome the attractions
between the molecules, and this energy has to come from somewhere. In this case,
your warm skin is a good source of energy. If your skin loses energy in this way, then it
cools.
The other answers are mainly silly! Any answer like C is almost certainly bound to be
wrong it is just there because the person setting the question couldnt think of
anything more sensible. A is wrong because you are told that everything is at room
temperature. The alcohol is at room temperature to start with, and so cant be colder.
And D is wrong because it requires the alcohol to freeze in contact with your warm
skin. Things dont freeze if you warm them up.

Chapter 2 Atomic Structure

2.1. Answer: B
Comment
A neutral atom has to have the same number of positively charged protons as
negatively charged electrons, otherwise it wouldnt be neutral. The number of
neutrons can vary because they arent charged.

2.2. Answer: C
Comment
Isotopes are atoms of the same element (the same atomic number, and so the same
number of protons), but with a different mass number. The mass number is the sum of
the number of protons and neutrons. That means that isotopes of an element must
have different numbers of neutrons. So statement C is the wrong one. Dont forget
that you are looking for a wrong statement.

2.3. Answer: B
Comment
The atom has 9 outer electrons, and so must have 9 protons. That means that its
atomic number is 9. The atom with an atomic number of 9 is fluorine.

2.4. Answer: A
Comment
Sulfur has an atomic number of 16, and its electrons will be arranged 2,8,6. The most
likely mistake is to take the wrong figure of 32 (the relative atomic mass) from the
Periodic Table. If you made that mistake, make sure that you dont do it again.

2.5. Answer: D
Comment
Apart from helium with just 2 electrons, all the other noble gases have 8 electrons in
their outer level. So D cant be a noble gas. You could easily check this by adding up
the total number of electrons in each atom which will be the same as its atomic
number. Check the Periodic Table to see where each of the atoms is. Because you can
quickly check it in this way, this should be a question which is practically impossible to
get wrong!

2.6. Answer: C
Comment
The atomic number means that the atom has 17 protons and 17 electrons. The mass
number of 35 is the sum of the number of protons and neutrons, and so there must be
18 neutrons. You can see immediately that C is wrong.

2.7. Answer: D
Comment
Atoms in the same Group of the Periodic Table have the same number of electrons in
their outer level. That means that A and C must be wrong. That leaves two
possibilities.
The answer is D not B. In B, the atom with just 1 electron is hydrogen, and hydrogen
isnt in Group 1 of the Periodic Table it is out on its own at the top of the table. You
might argue that this is a bit sneaky, but given that there are two possibilities, you
have to look at them carefully.
You could be sure of getting this question right, without any thinking at all, if you just
added up all the electrons in each atom, and found out where each element is in the
Periodic Table. That would take longer to do, of course.

2.8. Answer: A
Comment
If you look up strontium in the Periodic Table, you will find that it is in Group 2. All
elements in Group 2 have 2 electrons in their outer level. Whatever you do, dont try
to work out the structure as 2,8, (etc). Once you get beyond calcium (atomic number
20) this is too difficult to do at this level. The simple initial pattern breaks down after
this.

2.9. Answer: D
Comment
If the atom contains 11 protons, it is sodium not neon. That means that the untrue
statement is D. The only unfamiliar answer is possibly B. Since the particle contains 11
protons, but only 10 electrons, it isnt a neutral atom. Because it has 1 more proton
than electron, it must have a charge of +1. This is known as an ion, and is how sodium
exists in all of its compounds. You may not have come across this yet, but that doesnt
matter.

2.10. Answer: C
Comment
The original uranium-235 contained 92 protons. It loses 2 of these, and so the new
atom has an atomic number of 90. It loses a total of 2 protons and 2 neutrons, and so
the mass number falls by 4. So the new atom has a mass number of 231. The right

answer is therefore C. This is an easy question dont be put off by a question just
because it looks unfamiliar.