COMSATS Admission Test Chemistry Syllabus

Chemistry syllabus — full chapter and topic list

Expand any chapter to see its topics and sub-topics. This is the whole examinable outline for Chemistry in COMSATS Admission Test, not a summary of it.

1. 1

   Atomic Structure

   3 topics

   • Subatomic Particles
   • Quantum Numbers and Orbitals
   • Electronic Configuration
2. 2

   Chemical Bonding

   3 topics

   • Ionic and Covalent Bonding
   • Hybridization
   • Molecular Geometry
3. 3

   States of Matter

   3 topics

   • Gaseous State and Gas Laws
   • Liquid State
   • Solid State
4. 4

   Stoichiometry and the Mole Concept

   3 topics

   • Mole and Avogadro's Number
   • Empirical and Molecular Formulas
   • Limiting Reactant and Yield
5. 5

   Thermochemistry

   2 topics

   • Enthalpy and Heat of Reaction
   • Hess's Law
6. 6

   Chemical Equilibrium

   2 topics

   • Equilibrium Constant
   • Le Chatelier's Principle
7. 7

   Acids, Bases and Salts

   3 topics

   • pH and pOH
   • Buffers
   • Salt Hydrolysis
8. 8

   Electrochemistry

   2 topics

   • Oxidation and Reduction
   • Electrochemical Cells
9. 9

   Chemical Kinetics

   2 topics

   • Rate of Reaction
   • Factors Affecting Reaction Rate
10. 10

    Organic Chemistry

    3 topics

    • Hydrocarbons
    • Functional Groups
    • Alcohols, Aldehydes and Carboxylic Acids
11. 11

    Periodic Table and Periodicity

    2 topics

    • Periodic Trends
    • Groups and Periods

Chemistry flashcards for COMSATS Admission Test

21 of 50 cards from the Chemistry deck — real questions with worked answers.

1. What are the three fundamental subatomic particles, and what is the electric charge of each?

   Proton (+1), neutron (0, neutral), and electron (-1).

2. Compare the relative masses of a proton, neutron, and electron.

   Proton and neutron each have a mass of about 1 amu (1.0073 and 1.0087 amu). An electron is about 1836 times lighter than a proton (~0.000549 amu).

3. What does the atomic number (Z) of an element represent?

   The number of protons in the nucleus. It defines the element's identity and equals the number of electrons in a neutral atom.

4. What does the mass number (A) of an atom represent, and how is it calculated?

   The total number of protons and neutrons in the nucleus: A = number of protons + number of neutrons (A = Z + N).

5. What are isotopes?

   Atoms of the same element (same number of protons / atomic number) that have different numbers of neutrons, and therefore different mass numbers.

6. Who discovered the electron, the proton, and the neutron?

   Electron: J.J. Thomson (cathode rays). Proton: Ernest Rutherford. Neutron: James Chadwick.

7. What are the four quantum numbers and what does each describe?

   Principal (n) = energy level/shell size; Azimuthal/angular (l) = subshell/orbital shape; Magnetic (m_l) = orbital orientation; Spin (m_s) = direction of electron spin.

8. What values can the azimuthal quantum number (l) take, and which subshell does each correspond to?

   l ranges from 0 to n-1: l=0 (s), l=1 (p), l=2 (d), l=3 (f).

9. What are the allowed values of the magnetic quantum number (m_l) for a given l?

   m_l ranges from -l to +l, including 0, giving (2l + 1) values (i.e., 2l+1 orbitals in that subshell).

10. What are the two possible values of the spin quantum number (m_s)?

    +1/2 and -1/2 (spin up and spin down).

11. How many orbitals are in the s, p, d, and f subshells?

    s = 1 orbital, p = 3 orbitals, d = 5 orbitals, f = 7 orbitals.

12. What is the maximum number of electrons that an s, p, d, and f subshell can hold?

    s = 2, p = 6, d = 10, f = 14 electrons.

13. State the Pauli Exclusion Principle.

    No two electrons in the same atom can have the same set of all four quantum numbers; thus an orbital holds at most two electrons with opposite spins.

14. State Hund's Rule.

    Electrons fill degenerate (equal-energy) orbitals singly with parallel spins before any orbital is doubly occupied, maximizing total spin.

15. State the Aufbau Principle.

    Electrons fill orbitals in order of increasing energy, lowest energy first (e.g., 1s, 2s, 2p, 3s, 3p, 4s, 3d, ...).

16. What is the (n + l) rule for orbital filling order?

    Orbitals fill in order of increasing (n + l) value; if two orbitals have the same (n + l), the one with lower n fills first. (e.g., 4s, n+l=4, fills before 3d, n+l=5).

17. Write the ground-state electronic configuration of an oxygen atom (Z = 8).

    1s² 2s² 2p⁴.

18. Why do chromium (Z=24) and copper (Z=29) have anomalous electron configurations?

    A half-filled or fully-filled d subshell is extra stable, so an electron shifts from 4s to 3d: Cr = [Ar]4s¹3d⁵ and Cu = [Ar]4s¹3d¹⁰.

19. How is the maximum number of electrons in a shell calculated?

    Using 2n², where n is the principal quantum number (e.g., n=1: 2, n=2: 8, n=3: 18, n=4: 32).

20. What is an ionic bond and how does it form?

    An electrostatic attraction between oppositely charged ions, formed by the complete transfer of one or more electrons from a metal (forming a cation) to a non-metal (forming an anion).

21. What is a covalent bond?

    A chemical bond formed by the mutual sharing of one or more pairs of electrons between two atoms (typically non-metals).

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