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Atoms and Ions Basic Chemistry


ATOMS AND IONS

Atoms

Atoms are the basic unit of chemistry. They consist of 3 smaller things:

Protons - these are positively charged (+)
Electrons - these are negatively charged (-)
Neutrons - these have no charge
These 3 smaller particles are arranged in a particular way. In the center is the Nucleus where you find the positive Protons and neutral Neutrons.

Electrolysis


The use of electric current to stimulate a non-spontaneous reaction. Electrolysis can be used to separate a substance into its original components/elements and it was through this process that a number of elements have been discovered and are still produced in today's industry. In Electrolysis, an electric current it sent through an electrolyte and into solution in order to stimulate the flow of ions necessary to run an otherwise non-spontaneous reaction. Processes involving electrolysis include: electro-refining, electro-synthesis, and the chloro-alkali process.

Hydrolysis



Hydrolysis, in chemistry and physiology, a double decomposition reaction with water as one of the reactants. Thus, if a compound is represented by the formula AB in which A and B are atoms or groups and water is represented by the formula HOH, the hydrolysis reaction may be represented by the reversible chemical equation AB + HOH ⇌ AH + BOH. The reactants other than water, and the products of hydrolysis, may be neutral molecules—as in most hydrolyses involving organic compounds—or ionic molecules, as in hydrolyses of salts, acids, and bases.










Hydrolysis involving organic compounds may be illustrated by the reaction of water with an ester of a carboxylic acid; all such esters have the general formula RCO−OR′, in which R and R′ are