Physical chemistry

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Physical chemistry is a combined science of physics, chemistry, thermodynamics, electrochemistry, and quantum mechanics. It functions to provide molecular-level interpretations of observed macroscopic phenomena. Typically, changes in temperature, pressure, volume, heat, and work of systems in the solid, liquid, and or gas phase are correlated to microscopic atomic and molecular interactions.

The relationships that physical chemistry tries to resolve include the effects of:

1. Intermolecular forces on the physical properties of materials (plasticity, tensile strength, surface tension in liquids).
2. Reaction kinetics on the rate of a reaction.
3. The identity of ions on the electrical conductivity of materials.

Modern physical chemistry is firmly grounded upon physics. Important areas of study include thermochemistry (chemical thermodynamics), chemical kinetics, quantum chemistry, statistical mechanics, electrochemistry, surface and solid state chemistry, and spectroscopy. Physical chemistry is also fundamental to modern materials science. Physical chemistry now strongly overlaps with chemical physics.

Contents 1 Importance of Physical Chemistry 2 Important physical chemists 3 Fictional physical chemist 4 See also 5 Literature

[edit] Importance of Physical Chemistry

During the late 19th century, physical chemistry played an important role in Wilhelm Ostwald's and Jacobus Henricus van't Hoff's work on chemical equilibrium. It also played an important role in Svante Arrhenius theory of ionization.

After 1900 chemists began to get valuable help from physics about the electrical nature of the atom. This knowledge led to improvements in X-rays and the assignment of atomic numbers to the elements. (1994) Compton's Encyclopedia C-Ch. Compton's Learning Company, 302.

[edit] Important physical chemists

Willard Gibbs is considered the founder of physical chemistry because of his 1876 paper On the Equilibrium of Heterogeneous Substances, wherein he developed such cornerstones as free energy, chemical potential, and phase rule.

Svante Arrhenius Richard Bernstein E.J. Bowen Ludwig Boltzmann George Cowan Peter Debye Manfred Eigen Mostafa A. El-Sayed Richard R. Ernst Rosalind Franklin William Giauque J.W. Gibbs Fritz Haber Dudley R. Herschbach

Gerhard Herzberg Jaroslav Heyrovský Cyril Norman Hinshelwood J.H. van 't Hoff Roald Hoffmann Erich Hückel Friedrich Kohlrausch Irving Langmuir Yuan T. Lee Gilbert N. Lewis Frederick Lindemann Thomas Martin Lowry Rudolph A. Marcus Keiji Morokuma

Robert S. Mulliken Walther Nernst Lars Onsager Wilhelm Ostwald Linus Pauling John Charles Polanyi Michael Polanyi Stuart A. Rice John Ross E. Bright Wilson Richard N. Zare Ahmed H. Zewail

[edit] Fictional physical chemist

• Ned Brainard

[edit] See also

• Important publications in physical chemistry(chemistry),
• Important publications in physical chemistry(physics)
• Quantum chemistry

[edit] Literature

• Physical Chemistry, P.W. Atkins, 1978, Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-7167-3539-3.
• Physical Chemistry, R. Stephen Berry, Stuart A. Rice, John Ross, 2000 (2nd edition), Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-510589-3.
• Introduction to Modern Colloid Science, R.J. Hunter, 1993, Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-855386-2.
• Principles of Colloid and Surface Chemistry, P.C. Hiemenz, R. Rajagopalan, 1997, Marcel Dekker Inc., New York. ISBN 0-8247-9397-8.
• Physical Chemistry, W.J. Moore, 1963 (4th edition), Longmans, London/Prentice Hall, NJ.

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