Chemistry is the study of the composition, structure, properties, and interactions of matter.
Matter is all the material in the universe. Simply, matter is the stuff that things are made up of. Matter has mass and volume.
Mass is the amount of material (stuff) something is made of. Mass is not affected by gravity.
Materials are physical things that you can touch, taste, feel, see, or smell.
Volume is the amount of space occupied by materials. No two things can occupy the same space at the same time.
Matter exist in different states (phases). The states of matter most commonly identified are: gas, liquid and solid.
Solids have a definite shape and volume.
Liquids have a definite volume but take the shape if their container.
Gases take the shape and volume of their container,
Air is a mixture of different gases that have no color. While air is invisible, it is an example of matter, thus has mass and volume.
Discover For Yourself
Your exhaled breath is a gas. At room temperature, your exhaled breath is invisible, but like all matter it takes up space.
Demonstrate that Gas Has Volume
1. Blow into 9-inch (23-cm) round balloon to inflate it, then let the air out. Repeat this two or more times to stretch the balloon making it twice easier to inflate.
2. Place the balloon on a table and stack 2 or more books on top of it. Leave about half of the open end of the balloon extending from beneath the bottom book in the stack. Observe the position of the books in relation to the table.
3. Kneel beside the table and slightly inflate the balloon by blowing into it. Again observe the position of the books in relation to the table.
4. Blow more air into the balloon so that it is about twice as large. How does the increased amount of gas in the balloon affect the position of the books?
Results
The more the balloon is inflated the higher the books are lifted above the table.
Why?
In this experiment, it was demonstrated that gas has volume, shown by the lifting of the books as your breath inflated the balloon. The confined gas inside the balloon took up space and since no two things can occupy the same place at the same time, the inflated balloon displaced (pushed aside) the books. Exhaled breath is a mixture of gases, including air and carbon dioxide.
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