Specific properties of matter

What are we talking about when we talk about matter? We can say that everything around us is "made" of matter, our bodies are made of matter, the air is matter, even though we cannot distinguish it with the naked eye... Matter is any substance that has mass and occupies space. In order to classify, order and describe the different substances or materials that exist, we rely on their characteristics.

Some characteristics are general, that is, they apply to all matter or substances, such as: weight, length and volume. volume, other characteristics are specific to each matter and that is what makes it possible for us to differentiate between different substances. they. In this lesson at a Teacher we will tell you what are the specific properties of matter with examples.

We can call substances either materials to the different types of matter that exist. To give you an idea, some of the materials or substances that exist are: iron, gold, air, water, glass, etc.

We find matter in three different states of aggregation:

• Solid. In solid state we can mention sand, rocks.
• Liquid. In liquid state we can name water, oil.
• Gaseous. In a gaseous state we find air, or some gases such as helium and oxygen.

There is a fourth state of matter what is called state of plasma or plasmatic, It is considered a state similar to gas, but with the particularity that it has electrical or ionized charges, which makes that under a magnetic field can emit light, examples of substances in this state are the stars, the sun and the lightning bolts.

Characteristics of matter and examples

As mentioned earlierAll matter has different characteristics. that allow us to distinguish them. The general characteristics or properties are those that can be applied to any type of matter, without distinction, they are usually the extensive characteristics of matter, for example: the amount of mass that a body possesses or the volume, place that a body occupies in the space.

Let's see in more detail with examples. When we measure the mass or volume of a substance or matter we are going to obtain an amount: 1 kilo, half a kilo, 1 liter, 500 cm³, said like this we can know the amount of a substance, but we do not know what kind of material or substance is treated, it could be 1 kilo of wheat flour, or 1 kilo of sand, 1 liter of soda or 1 liter of water. The general characteristics do not allow us to obtain information about the type of matter, in order to differentiate them we have the specific properties of the matter.

The specific properties of matter are the characteristics that allow us to differentiate one type of matter from another, They are also called intensive properties of matter. Examples of them are: color, brightness, hardness, plasticity, density... Let's take a closer look at this type of property!

We can classify the specific properties of matter into different categories, below we will show you various examples of specific properties.

sensory properties

They are those properties that we can perceive with our senses, such as taste, smell, texture...

• Color and brightness: Each type of matter has its own characteristic color and/or shine. Gloss is the ability of a material to reflect light. We can find opaque or shiny materials such as some metals and minerals. Silver, gold, and quartz are examples of this.

Mechanical properties

They are related to the behavior of a material in the solid state when subjected to stress:

• Hardness: A material is hard or soft if it can be scratched or not, this means that it is the resistance of a material to be scratched. The hardest material that exists is diamond (since it is not scratched by any), and it is for this reason that a diamond tip is used to check the hardness of other materials.
• Toughness/brittleness: A material is said to be tough if it can withstand blows without breaking, while a material is brittle when it breaks easily. Examples of brittle materials are crystal, glass, and porcelain. An example of tough materials are metals such as iron, steel, copper.
• Elasticity: Elasticity is the property that a material has when it is elastic, this means that if I apply a force to it I can stretch it and when I remove it, it returns to its initial position. Examples of elastic materials are some rubbers, rubber and silicone.
• Plasticity: Unlike elastic materials, plastic materials do not return to their previous shape, when I remove the force that was applied, it does not return to its original shape. Examples of this type of material are: some plastics, plasticine.
• Mechanical strength: It is a characteristic that indicates how much stress a material can tolerate without breaking. Examples of materials with high mechanical resistance are: steel, diamond, quartz.

Physical-chemical properties

They are related to the behavior of matter against external actions:

• Transparency/opacity: It is a characteristic that is related to the behavior of a material when exposed to light. There are materials that are transparent because they allow light to pass through them, there are others that are translucent, that allow the passage of a portion of light and those that directly do not allow the passage of light are called opaque. Examples of transparent material is glass, translucent: onion skin, some crystals, and opaque materials can be plastics, wood, metals, ceramics, etc.
• Oxidation: It is when a material is affected or damaged by exposure to oxygen, when it is subjected to atmospheric or chemical factors. Examples of materials that oxidize are some metals, however, there are materials that are not affected by this action, such as plastics, wood.
• Thermal conductivity: It is a characteristic that indicates if a material allows the passage of heat. Those materials that have this characteristic, that is, that allow heat to be transmitted or absorbed, are called thermal conductors and those that do not are called thermal insulators. Examples of thermal conductors are some metals and insulators, they are plastics, wood. If we think of a kitchen pot we can see that it is made of metal, which can be steel, and its handles are made of plastic so that we can handle it without burning ourselves.
• Electric conductivity: It is a property that indicates whether or not a material allows the passage of electricity or electric current. Materials that allow conductivity are called electrical conductors, those that do not are called electrical insulators. A clear example is the cables: on the outside they are provided with an insulating material, such as the plastic cover, and on the inside are the copper filaments that conduct electricity. The plastic that covers the copper allows the manipulation of the cables so as not to electrocute us.
• Density: It is a measure that indicates the amount of matter per unit volume. It is calculated with a formula, mass/volume and is expressed in Kg/m³. Density depends on temperature and pressure. Solid bodies tend to have a higher density than liquids, and liquids have a higher density than gases. Let's see some examples: The density of Gold 19.3 gr/cm³, the density of water is 1 g/cm³. Lead is much denser than cork as it contains more matter in less volume.
• Boiling point: It is the temperature at which a liquid changes to the gaseous state. It is usually expressed in units of degrees Celsius. Examples: The boiling point of water is 100 °C, and that of olive oil is 180 °C.
• Melting point: It is the point of temperature at which a solid changes to the liquid state. Examples: The melting point of water is 0 °C and that of gold is 1064 °C.
• Solubility: It is a measure that determines if a substance has the ability to dissolve in another, called a solute, and form a homogeneous mixture. Examples: Salt in water, the salt would be the solute that mixes and dissolves in the solvent, which in this case would be water.
• Acidity/alkalinity: Acidity or alkalinity is the ability of a substance to increase or decrease the number of free protons in water. There is a PH scale to measure this property of substances, which goes from 0 to 14. The 7, which is the intermediate point, determines that said substance is neutral, if the PH is below of 7, the substance will be acidic, if it is above this measurement, the substance is considered alkaline
• Combustibility: It is the ability of a material to carry out combustion, or catch fire in some cases. Combustible substances are alcohol, gasoline, wood.

Ecological properties of matter

• Toxicity: It is a characteristic that determines if a material is toxic or not, if it affects health or produces harmful effects on living beings, the soil or the environment. Examples of toxic substances are Mercury, Lead and acetone.
• Biodegradability: This property indicates the ability of a substance or material to break down naturally into simpler substances.