Chemistry: Liquids and Intermolecular Forces

Liquids and Intermolecular Forces

In the last section, we discussed the properties and types of solids. It seems only fitting that this section is about liquids. For those of you who are good at spotting patterns, yes, we'll soon be learning about the properties of gases in The Kinetic Molecular Theory of Gases.

If you've ever taken a chemistry class, you've probably noticed that many chemical reactions take place in the liquid phase. The reason for this is simple: liquids are easy to work with. Four out of five chemists prefer to work with chemicals in some liquid form because they're easy to measure, they don't require much special equipment to handle them, and they mix with each other fairly quickly. Liquids are the perfect medium for chemistry!

Of course, because liquids are used for a lot of things, it's important that you know how they behave. That's where this section comes in!

Excerpted from The Complete Idiot's Guide to Chemistry © 2003 by Ian Guch. All rights reserved including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form. Used by arrangement with Alpha Books, a member of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.

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