Showing posts with label discover. Show all posts
Showing posts with label discover. Show all posts

Saturday, January 9, 2010

Quantitative Analysis


the examination of a sample to discover the amounts of the substances present.

Taken from Dictionary of Science

__________________________________________________________

In chemistry, quantitative analysis is the determination of the absolute or relative abundance (often expressed as a concentration) of one, several or all particular substance(s) present in a sample.


Once the presence of certain substance(s) in a sample is known, the study of their absolute or relative abundance can help in determining specific properties. Knowing the composition of a sample is very important and several ways have been developed to make it possible, like gravimetric and volumetric analysis. Gravimetric analysis yields more accurate data about the composition of a sample than volumetric analysis does, but the first one takes more time to perform in the laboratory. Volumetric analysis in the other side doesn't take that much time and the results that we obtain are in the most cases satisfactory. Volumetric analysis can be simply a titration based in a neutralization reaction but it can also be a precipitation or a complex forming reaction as well as a titration based in an redox reaction. However, each method in quantitative analysis has a general specification, in neutralization reactions, for example, the reaction that occurs is between an acid and a base, which yields a salt and water, hence the name neutralization. In the precipitation reactions the standard solution is in the most cases silver nitrate which is used as a reagent to react with the ions present in the sample and to form a high insoluble precipitate. Precipitation methods are often called simply as Argentometry. In the two other methods the situation is the same. Complex forming titration is a reaction that occurs between metal ions and a standard solution that is in the most cases EDTA (ethylene diamine tetra acetic acid). In the redox titration that reaction is carried out between an oxidizing agent and a reduction agent.


For example, quantitative analysis performed by mass spectrometry on biological samples can determine, by the relative abundance ratio of specific proteins, indications of certain diseases, like cancer.


Taken from Wikipedia

Sunday, January 3, 2010

Qualitative Analysis


the chemical examination of a sample to discover what substances are present.

Taken from Dictionary of Science

___________________________________________________________

In the qualitative analysis procedure, the chemical properties of an unknown substance are determined by systematically reacting the unknown with a number of different reagents. By predetermining what the particular reaction will produce if a specific ion is present, the ions that actually are in the solution can be identified. For example, if a reaction is known to produce a precipitate if ion A is present and a precipitate is formed when the reaction is run, then ion A may be present in solution (there may be, and usually are, other ions that will also precipitate with a particular reagent). If no precipitate is formed when the reaction is run, then ion A is clearly not present in the unknown solution and a different reaction will have to be run to determine what ions are present.


There are two general situations in which qualitative analysis is used - in the identification of a simple salt, or the identification of multiple cations in a solution.


Taken from Wired Chemist


Wednesday, December 30, 2009

Radar


(radio detection and ranging) the use of radio waves to discover the presence and distance of an object. Radar is used in the navigation of aircraft, ships, missiles and satellites.

Taken from Dictionary of Science

_________________

Radar is an object detection system that uses electromagnetic waves to identify the range, altitude, direction, or speed of both moving and fixed objects such as aircraft, ships, motor vehicles, weather formations, and terrain. The term RADAR was coined in 1941 as an acronym for RAdio Detection And Ranging. The term has since entered the English language as a standard word, radar, losing the capitalization. Radar was originally called RDF (Radio Direction Finder, now used as a totally different device) in the United Kingdom, in order to preserve the secrecy of its ranging capability

Taken from Wikipedia