Inorganic Chemistry For Dummies^®

Introduction

Inorganic chemistry deals with all the atoms on the periodic table, the various rules that govern how they look, and how they interact. At first glance, trying to understand the differences among 112 atoms might seem like a mammoth task. But because of the periodic table, we can bunch them up into groups and periods and make them much easier to grasp.

So welcome to Inorganic Chemistry For Dummies. We hope that through this book you come to learn a great deal about the environment around you, what materials you use on a regular basis, and why some materials are more important to us than others. This book is fun and informative, while at the same time insightful and descriptive. And it’s designed to make this fascinating and practical science accessible to anyone, from the novice chemist to the mad scientist.

About This Book

This book was written in such a way that you can start in any chapter you choose, in the chapter that interests you the most, without having to read all the chapters before it. But the chapters build on material from one chapter to the next, so if you feel more background would help you, feel free to start with Chapter 1. You can also make use of the numerous cross references in each chapter to find pertinent information. But it can also be read like a study guide to help a student understand some of the more complicated aspect of this fascinating science.

We tried to make the information as accessible as possible. Each chapter is broken down into bite-sized chunks that make it easy for you to quickly digest and understand the material presented. Some of the chunks are further broken down into subsections when there’s special need to elaborate further on the concepts being discussed.

Science is a process that requires lots of imagination. It requires more imagination than memory, especially as you start to learn more and more about a certain topic. To help with your imagination we have tried to include helpful graphics and artwork that complement the writing within the text. Further to this we include many real-world examples and interesting historical or scientific tidbits to keep your curiosity piqued.

Conventions Used in This Book

Science progressed more rapidly in the last 200 years than it had in the few thousand years previous. A great deal of this success came from the agreement among scientist to create and use a set of standard conventions. The two most important conventions are the periodic table and the international system of units, called SI units. SI units are based on the metric system, and it’s more common to see temperature expressed as Celsius than Fahrenheit. And you see lengths expressed in meters instead of inches and feet. Weights and mass are expressed in terms of grams instead of pounds or stone.

And the following conventions throughout this text make everything consistent and easy to understand:

All Web addresses appear in monofont.

New and key terms appear in italics and are closely followed by an easy-to-understand definition.

Bold text highlights the action part of numbered steps.

What You Don’t Need to Read

Sidebars are highlighted in gray-shaded boxes so they’re easy to pick out. They contain fun facts and curious asides, but none of their information is crucial to your understanding of inorganic chemistry. Feel free to just skip over them if you prefer.

Foolish Assumptions

As authors of Inorganic Chemistry For Dummies we may have made a few foolish assumptions about the readership. We assume that you have very little background in chemistry, and possibly none at all; that you’re new to inorganic chemistry, and maybe you have never heard of the subject before. We assume that you know what chemistry is, but not much more than that. This book begins with all the general chemistry info that you need to grasp the concepts and material in the rest of the book. If you have some understanding of general chemistry, however, all the better.

You may be a medical student who needs to brush up in inorganic chemistry, or a high school student getting ready for a science fair, or even a freshman or junior at college. We’ve tailored this book to meet all your needs, and we sincerely hope you find great explanations about the concepts presented that are also engaging, interesting, and useful.

When you finish reading this book and your interest in chemistry is heightened, we recommend that you go to a local bookseller (second-hand book stores are a personal favorite) and find more books that offer other perspectives on inorganic chemistry. There are also excellent resources on the Internet, and many schools make class notes available online. But the best way to get involved in chemistry is by doing it. Chemistry is a fun and exciting field, made evident when you conduct chemistry experiments. Keep an eye out for demonstration kits that enable you to do your own experiments at home. And note that the last chapter of this book offers ten really cool experiments, too.

How This Book Is Organized

This book is organized into multiple parts that group topics together in the most logical way possible. Here’s a brief description of each section of Inorganic Chemistry For Dummies:

Part I: Reviewing Some General Chemistry

Here you are introduced to science in general, and we give you the basic tenets of general chemistry that help you throughout the rest of the book.

In Chapter 1, you start with an introduction to inorganic chemistry, what it is, and why it is important. You learn how it’s different from organic chemistry and how this difference is important for technology and society.

The following chapters of this section deal with topics that are covered in many general chemistry textbooks, but these chapters cover the topics in greater detail than a general chemistry textbook. In Chapter 2 we explain what the atom looks like, how it’s structured, and why this is important for inorganic chemistry. In particular, this chapter delves into the periodic table and how the structure of the atom is described. Chapter 3 introduces oxidation and reduction chemistry that helps you understand why many chemical reactions take place. It deals with the electrons that each atom has and how the electrons can be shuttled around from atom to atom. Then in Chapter 4 we focus on the nucleus and how changes to the nucleus lead to nuclear chemistry. And finally we end this section by talking about acid-base chemistry because this can help you understand the many ways in which atoms and molecules interact with one another.

Part II: Rules of Attraction: Chemical Bonding

In this section we talk about the various ways that atoms can bond with one another. In Chapter 6 we introduce covalent bonding. Chapter 7 deals with molecular symmetry, not just for inorganic chemistry but also fundamental to many of the physical sciences. Ionic and metallic bonding are detailed in Chapter 8.

Chapter 9, like all of the chapters, can be read as a standalone chapter, but it’s much easier to understand if you read through the three preceding chapters. If you get stuck on coordination complexes, however, refer back to the previous three chapters for a little background information.

Part III: It’s Elemental: Dining at the Periodic Table

The periodic table contains over 100 separate and unique elements, which are described in Part III. We cover all the important elements; and to make it easier to digest, we’ve broken them down into five related chapters. Each chapters deals with elements that are similar to each other, making them easier to understand.

To get the ball rolling we introduce hydrogen in Chapter 10, because it’s the most abundant element in the universe and can be found in many chemicals and materials. We then move from left to right on the periodic table, starting off with the alkali and alkali earth elements in Chapter 11. We guide you through the periodic table to the main group elements in Chapter 12, the transition metals in Chapter 13, and finally round out Part III with the lanthanides and actinides in Chapter 14.

Part IV: Special Topics

These chapters cover what makes the study of inorganic chemistry so interesting and also distinguishes it from organic chemistry. However, you will find a great deal of overlap with other fields of study such as material science, physics, and biology.

Inorganic chemistry became a modern science with the advent of organo­metallic chemistry, described in Chapter 15. Chapter 16 shows you how ­practical and important catalysis is to the modern world in which we live. Chapter 17 deals with the inorganic chemistry of living systems and the environment. The subject matter makes this chapter unique from the others in this section. This is also true for Chapter 18 where we describe solid state chemistry, the basis of the information technology revolution. Chapter 19 gives you a quick introduction to one of the most interesting and promising technological developments of the modern age, namely nanotechnology.

Part V: The Part of Tens

To make this book even easier to grasp and read, we compiled three important lists to help you in your study of inorganic chemistry. In Chapter 20, we introduce and explain ten common household products. Then, in Chapter 21, you meet ten of the most important Nobel Prizes that were awarded to chemists. Chapter 22 introduces ten instruments and techniques that are commonly found and used in laboratories across the globe. And finally we give you ten experiments that you can try out at home in Chapter 23. Remember, one of the most fun parts of chemistry is doing chemistry, and this chapter gives you some fun experiments to try.

Icons Used in This Book

Throughout this book icons are used to draw your attention to certain ­information.

This is not often used here, but the Tip icon indicates that some information may be especially useful to you.

When you see the Remember icon you should understand that this information is quite important to understanding the concepts being explained. If you are studying inorganic chemistry, this is one of the most important icons to look for. It can indicate a definition, or be a concise explanation of a concept; at other times it indicates information to help you grasp how various concepts overlap.

The Warning icon tells you to pay close attention to what’s being said because it indicates where a potentially dangerous situation may arise.

The Technical Stuff icon is used to indicate detailed information; for some people, it might not be necessary to read or understand.

Where to Go from Here

You might be taking an inorganic chemistry course, or maybe you’re just curious about the world around you. Regardless, if you’re looking for something specific, you can find it by checking the index or maybe even the glossary. When you know where to find what you are looking for, go right ahead and jump in. And enjoy.