Classification of Matter
What is matter?
Matter, the material of which the universe is
composed, may be defined as anything that
occupies space and has mass
Mass is a measure of quantity of matter
How can we classify a
material?

by its chemical constitution as an element,
a compound, or a mixture

by its physical state as solid, liquid, or gas
Element
A pure substance that cannot be decomposed
into simpler substances
Name
Symbol
Physical appearence
Formula
Aluminium
Al
Silvery white metal
Al
Bromine
Br
Reddish brown liquid
Br2
Hydrogen
H
Colorless gas
H2
Iodine
I
Bluish black solid
I2
Oxygen
O
Colorless gas
O2
Phosphorus
P
Yellowish waxy solid
P4
Potassium
K
Soft, silvery white metal
K
Sulfur
S
Yellow solid
S8
At present 114 different elements are known
About 90 of the elements can be extracted from
natural sources, but only about 30 elements are
fairly common
Elements of the living organism:
11 elements can be found in the living
organism in large quantity:
H, C, N, O, Na, Mg, P, S, Cl, K, Ca
7 elements in small quantity:
Mn, Fe, Co, Cu, Zn, I, Mo
7 elements are important only for a
few species:
B, F, Si, V, Cr, Se, Sn
Compound
A pure substance that is composed of
two or more elements in fixed proportions
and that can be chemically decomposed
into these elements
e.g. water: 11.19% hydrogen
88.81% oxygen
iron (III) oxyde: 70.0% iron
30.0% oxygen
Known compounds:

over 10 000

over 5 000 000 organic
inorganic
Mixtures
Consist two or more pure substances
and have variable composition
Heterogeneous mixture is not uniform
throughout but consists of parts that are
physically distinct (iron + sulfur; iron + sand)
Homogeneous mixture appears uniform
throughout and is usually called a solution
(air, salt in water, silver-gold alloy)
MATTER
Heterogeneous
mixtures
by physical
means into
Homogeneous
by physical
mixtures
means into
Compounds
by chemical
means into
Homogeneous
matter
Pure substances
Elements
State of Matter
Gas
Liquid
Solid
Compressibility
Fluidity
Relative
Denstiy
High
Very low
Very low
Fluid
Fluid
Rigid
Low
High
High
Gas:
atoms, ions, or molecules in constant, random
motion through mostly empty space
Liquid:
atoms, ions, or molecules closely spaced and in
constant motion
Solid:
atoms, ions, or molecules at closely spaced,
approximately fixed sites