Question

Explain how physical and chemical changes are different from physical and chemical properties.

Answer 1

Answer: Physical properties, such as hardness and boiling point, and physical changes, such as melting or freezing, do not involve a change in the composition of matter. Chemical properties, such flammability and acidity, and chemical changes, such as rusting, involve production of matter that differs from that present beforehand.

Answer 2

Identifying both physical and chemical changes and properties can help us understand more about the chemicals that make up the world around us.

Properties

Physical and chemical properties are the characteristics of compounds. So, properties include color, smell, size, boiling point, and flammability. These properties are facts or data points about the chemicals that are either known or easily found through testing.

Changes

Physical and chemical changes are when a compound undergoes some process that changes the compound. For example, changes include crushing, melting, burning, or rotting. Changes are processes that compounds go through. Physical and chemical changes can affect physical and chemical properties. For example, crushing a soda can changes its size.

Physical vs. Chemical

Now, let's differentiate between physical and chemical. Physical properties and changes have to do with the state of the compound, not the chemical make up. For this reason, physical properties and changes are usually easy to observe. On the other hand, chemical properties and changes are about the elements and chemicals that make up a compound. Thus, chemical properties describe a compound's chemical identity, and chemical changes change it.