UPSC NDA 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 UPSC NDA, not a summary of it.

1. 1

   Elements and Compounds

   overview

   Examined as a single unit within Chemistry — no further topic split in the official outline.

2. 2

   Mixtures and Solutions

   overview

   Examined as a single unit within Chemistry — no further topic split in the official outline.

3. 3

   Acids, Bases, and Salts

   overview

   Examined as a single unit within Chemistry — no further topic split in the official outline.

4. 4

   Atomic Structure

   overview

   Examined as a single unit within Chemistry — no further topic split in the official outline.

5. 5

   Chemical Reactions

   overview

   Examined as a single unit within Chemistry — no further topic split in the official outline.

6. 6

   Periodic Table

   overview

   Examined as a single unit within Chemistry — no further topic split in the official outline.

7. 7

   Metals and Non-metals

   overview

   Examined as a single unit within Chemistry — no further topic split in the official outline.

8. 8

   Organic Chemistry

   overview

   Examined as a single unit within Chemistry — no further topic split in the official outline.

9. 9

   Environmental Chemistry

   overview

   Examined as a single unit within Chemistry — no further topic split in the official outline.

Chemistry flashcards for UPSC NDA

21 of 51 cards from the Chemistry deck — real questions with worked answers.

1. What is matter, and what are its three common physical states?

   Matter is anything that has mass and occupies space. Its three common states are solid, liquid, and gas.

2. What is an element?

   A pure substance made of only one kind of atom that cannot be broken down into simpler substances by chemical means (e.g., oxygen, gold).

3. What is a compound?

   A pure substance formed when two or more elements combine chemically in a fixed ratio by mass (e.g., water, H2O).

4. How does a mixture differ from a compound?

   A mixture is a physical combination of substances in any ratio that retain their properties and can be separated physically; a compound is a chemical combination in a fixed ratio with new properties.

5. What are the three subatomic particles and their charges?

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

6. Define atomic number and mass number.

   Atomic number (Z) = number of protons in the nucleus. Mass number (A) = number of protons + neutrons.

7. What are isotopes?

   Atoms of the same element with the same atomic number (protons) but different mass numbers (different numbers of neutrons), e.g., C-12 and C-14.

8. State the law of conservation of mass.

   In a chemical reaction, mass is neither created nor destroyed; the total mass of reactants equals the total mass of products.

9. What is Avogadro's number, and what does one mole represent?

   Avogadro's number is 6.022 x 10^23. One mole is the amount of substance containing this many particles (atoms, molecules, or ions).

10. How is an ionic bond formed?

    By the transfer of electrons from a metal to a non-metal, producing oppositely charged ions held together by electrostatic attraction (e.g., NaCl).

11. How is a covalent bond formed?

    By the mutual sharing of electron pairs between non-metal atoms (e.g., H2, O2, CH4).

12. What is the pH scale and what do its values indicate?

    A 0-14 scale measuring acidity/alkalinity. pH < 7 is acidic, pH = 7 is neutral, pH > 7 is basic (alkaline).

13. According to Arrhenius, what are acids and bases?

    An acid produces H+ (hydrogen) ions in water; a base produces OH- (hydroxide) ions in water.

14. What is produced when an acid reacts with a base?

    Salt and water, in a neutralization reaction (e.g., HCl + NaOH -> NaCl + H2O).

15. What gas is released when a metal reacts with a dilute acid?

    Hydrogen gas (H2).

16. What is oxidation in terms of electrons?

    Oxidation is the loss of electrons (it also means gain of oxygen or loss of hydrogen).

17. What is reduction in terms of electrons?

    Reduction is the gain of electrons (it also means loss of oxygen or gain of hydrogen).

18. What is a catalyst?

    A substance that speeds up a chemical reaction without itself being consumed, by lowering the activation energy.

19. What is an allotrope? Give an example.

    Different physical forms of the same element in the same physical state. Example: diamond and graphite are allotropes of carbon.

20. Why is diamond hard while graphite is soft and slippery?

    Diamond has a 3D tetrahedral network of strong covalent bonds; graphite has layers of carbon held by weak forces that slide over each other.

21. What is the chemical formula of water, and what bond holds the atoms together?

    H2O; two hydrogen atoms covalently bonded to one oxygen atom.

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