Qualitative Analysis and Chemical Bonding

Product Details

Big Idea 2, Investigation 6, Primary Learning Objective 2.22

What kinds of forces hold atoms together? How do these forces influence the properties of materials?

The purpose of this advanced-inquiry lab is to design a procedure to identify twelve unknown solids based on systematic testing of their physical and chemical properties. The lab begins with an introductory activity to select measurable properties that will help identify the type of bonding in a solid. Given four solids representing the four types of chemical bonds—ionic, polar covalent, nonpolar covalent and metallic—students review the properties of each solid with a minimum of four tests. The results provide a basis for a guided-inquiry design of a flow chart procedure that uses physical and chemical property tests to separate and identify twelve unknown solids.

Complete for 8 student groups. A version of this lab is available as a Wet/Dry Advanced Inquiry Laboratory Kit for One Period (Catalog No. AP8498).

2024 CED Alignment:  

Unit 2 - Compound Structure and Properties  

Topic 2.1 - Types of Chemical Bonds 

Description of the Lab  

Students investigate how bonding type affects macroscopic properties like conductivity, solubility, and melting point. They use lab data to classify unknown substances and justify their conclusions, reinforcing connections between observable properties and particle-level interactions. 

Learning Objective 

• LO 2.1.A – Explain the relationship between the type of bonding and the properties of the elements participating in the bond. 

Skills Students Will Learn 

• 4.C – Explain the connection between particulate-level and macroscopic properties of a substance using models and representations. 
  In this lab: Students relate melting point and conductivity to ionic, covalent, and metallic bonding. 

• 5.A – Identify quantities needed to solve a problem from given information (e.g., text, mathematical expressions, graphs, or tables). 
  In this lab: Students use solubility and conductivity data to identify bonding types. 

• 6.E – Provide reasoning to justify a claim using connections between particulate and macroscopic scales or levels.