General Chemistry for Engineers

Basic chemical terminology: amount of substance, concentration and stoichiometry. Chemical nomenclature. Properties of gases: units of pressure, vapour pressure of liquids, the ideal gas law, Dalton's law. Chemical equilibrium: the law of mass action, acid-base equilibria, buffer solutions, titration, solubility. Basic thermochemistry and chemical thermodynamics: work, heat, internal energy, enthalpy, entropy and Gibbs energy.

The course introduces general aspects of the field of chemistry, and creates a foundation for further specialization within organic, inorganic and biological chemistry, as well as electrochemistry, thermodynamics and materials science. The laboratory part provides an introduction to basic chemical laboratory techniques and precision work, as well as a practical demonstration of selected parts of the subject matter.

After completing the course, the candidate will be able to:

• Write balanced chemical reactions and perform stoichiometric calculations for acid-base reactions, redox reactions, and solubility reactions
• Use rules for chemical nomenclature to name inorganic compounds
• Apply the gas laws and tabulated values of vapour pressure to perform calculations related to the properties of gases, both theoretically and in connection with experimental work
• Explain what chemical equilibrium is, and use the law of mass action to calculate equilibrium constants and composition at equilibrium for various types of chemical reactions, including solubility calculations and pH calculations for buffer solutions
• Calculate change in enthalpy, entropy and Gibbs energy for a chemical reaction, and connect this with chemical equilibrium and spontaneity
• Conduct simple chemical experiments, explain the theoretical foundation of the experimental methods through calculations, and document and report experimental results through written reports
• Read and understand safety data sheets and handle chemicals accordingly

Lectures, problem sets, laboratory assignments and self-study. An estimate of the time required for the course during a semester is 60 hours for lectures, 40 hours for problem sets, 40 hours for laboratory assignments (including preparation and report writing), and 70 hours self-study (sum: 210 hours).