Nowadays the 12C isotope is used as a reference for comparison of relative atomic masses.

This isotope has the assigned mass of 12.00000, all other atoms are measured relative to 12C.
Carbon atoms have a mass approximately 12 times that of a hydrogen atom, therefore they have a
RELATIVE mass of 12 (there are no units as it is a comparison - see relative measures)

Avogadros number
He found that the number of atoms in 12 g of carbon was equal to approximately 6.02 x 1023
1 mole of any substance contains an Avogadro number of particles of that substance = 6.02 x 1023 particles

EXAMPLE
1 mole of iron contains 6.02 x 1023 iron atoms
1 mole of chlorine gas contains 6.02 x 1023
chlorine molecules
1 mole of electrons contains 6.02 x 1023
electrons (also called a Faraday of charge)
Note that the Avogadro constant simply describes a specific number of any particle, be they atoms,
molecules, electrons or even armchairs
2. Avogadro's number or constant is the number to which the mass of an atom must be multiplied to give a
mass in grams numerically equal to its relative atomic mass.

Avogadro's constant = 6.02 x 1023

The amount of any substance containing an Avogadro number of particles of that substance is called a mole.
1 mole of any substance has a mass equal to its relative mass expressed in grams

EXAMPLE
1 mole of magnesium contains 6.02 x 1023 magnesium atoms
1 mole of magnesium has a mass of 24g
12g of magnesium is equivalent to 1/2 moles = 0.5 moles of
magnesium
12g of magnesium contains 1/2 moles of magnesium atoms =
0.5 x 6.02 x 1023 = 3.01 x 1023 magnesium atoms

MOLE

practical descriptions

GASES
To deal with gases in chemistry some assumptions are made:

The gas particles themselves occupy no volume

The forces of attraction between particles are so small as to be negligible
Collisions involving gas particles are perfectly elastic. (no energy lost)
1

decimetre cubed (1 dm3) is also called 1 litre (= 1000 cm3)

conversions
To convert from cm3/ml to dm3/litres divide by 1000
To convert from dm3/litres to cm3/ml multiply by 1000
Pressure
The Pascal is a fairly small quantity and atmospheric pressure = 100.0 kPa (approximately) - this is the value
used for gas calculations in the IB chemistry exams.
1000 Pa = 1 kPa
Temperature
0K = -273C
273K = 0C
373K = 100C
To convert from degrees Celsius to Kelvin add 273
Temperature in degrees Celsius = Absolute temperature in Kelvin 273

GASES
Avogadro suggested that "equal volumes of all gases contain equal number of molecules (the gases being

Gas molar volume

When the temperature is 273K and the pressure is 1 atmosphere (100.0 kPa) the gas molar volume is equal
to 22.7 dm3 ( to 3 significant figures)

DENSITY
Density = mass/volume

BOYLES LAW
Pv=constant
(inversely prop)
The pressure of a gas derived from collisions of the gas particles with the walls of the container. If the volume
is decreased then the gas particles are resticted to less space and there are more collisions per second at
the walls and consequently a greater pressure is exerted.

CHARLES LAW
V/T = CONSTANT
This relationship can be explained by considering the effect that temperature has on the average kinetic
energy of the gas particles. Increase the temperature and the particles increase in energy and speed.
Collisions between particles force the gas apart and if the pressure is kept constant then the gas expands.

Equation of state