Name: _________________________
Hour: ________
States of Matter
By completing this activity, you will be able to:
1. visually see the molecular difference between solids, liquids, and gases.
2. evaluate the state of matter at various temperatures.
3. explain what happens to the state as heat is added or removed.
PART 1 – STATES OF MATTER
 Complete the tables below by analyzing the atoms/molecules and the temperatures for
the different substances and states of matter. Be sure to fill in the correct box for each
observation.
Table 1. Temperatures at which the phases are found.
Substance
Solid Temperature
/ 0C
Liquid
Temperature / 0C
Gas Temperature /
0C
Neon
Argon
Oxygen
Water
Table 2. Movement of atoms and molecules in the phases.
Substance
Neon
Argon
Oxygen
Water
Observations on the
amount of movement
that atoms/molecules in
the solid phase have
Observations on the
amount of movement
that atoms/molecules in
the liquid phase have
Observations on the
amount of movement
that atoms/molecules in
the gas have
PART 1 ANALYSIS
 Use the observations you just recorded to answer the following.
1. Was each substance in the same phases at the same temperatures? What does this
imply about identifying substances in the future?
2. Did the number of atoms/molecules (the circles) depend on the phase that the
substance was in? Does this support what we know about the conservation of mass?
Why or why not?
3. Kinetic energy is the energy associated with movement. For example, a car racing
down the freeway has a lot of kinetic energy. Using this and your observations in table
(2) about movement, describe the kinetic energy of atoms/molecules in each phase
(example: which has high kinetic energy? which has low kinetic energy?).
PART 2 – ADDING / REMOVING HEAT
 For part 2, pick any of the four substances from part 1. This time you will add heat to
the substance and see how the atoms and thermometer react. You can add heat by raising
the toggle in the bucket below the container holding the substance (it will make a little
flame appear). You can remove heat by lowering the toggle in the bucket below the
container holding the substance (it will make some ice cubes appear). Fill in the table
below with your observations.
Table 3. Observations of the system as heat is added or removed.
Observations of the atoms
Adding Heat
Cooling or
removing heat
Observations on the
temperature (Does the
temperature go up or down?)
PART 2 ANALYSIS
 Use your observations from parts 1 and 2 to answer the following questions.
4. Do the observations in table (3) change depending on the substance that you added or
removed heat from? What does this imply about adding and removing heat to the
substances?
5. Use your observations for tables (2) and (3) to describe the relationship between speed
of movement, kinetic energy, and temperature (you may also need to see question #3 to
help you answer this question).
6. Describe the movement of the atoms/molecules relative to each other in each phase.
Can the atoms/molecules move out of place? Do they interact with other atoms/molecules
often? Are there many other atoms/molecules nearby?
7. If you wanted to change a solid substance to a liquid substance, what could you do?