1. UNIT: Chemistry and Measurement
TOPIC: Units and Unit Conversions
Objectives: Lesson 3 of 4
You will understand the relationship that exists between mass and volume
You will learn which units we use to measure mass, volume, and length
You will learn what the Metric System is and the common prefixes used in measurement
You will learn how to convert between two units of temperature; degrees Celsius and Kelvin

2. Quickwrite In 1-2 sentences answer one of the questions below:
What are some units of measurement you’re familiar with?
In football, the field is measured in yards, is the yard part of the metric system or the English (standards) system???
Analyze gold blocks A and B below, which block do you think has more mass (more atoms)?
Which block do you think has a greater volume (takes up more space)? B A
= Gold
Atom

3. Mass and Volume Relationship
Because Block B contains more atoms or “stuff” it therefore has a greater mass
We could verify this by putting both blocks on a scale
The block with more mass, Block B contains more atoms and will consequently weigh more
Notice, mass is measured in grams
Mass is how much stuff or matter an object is made of
Think of mass as how many atoms or molecules make up an object
For example, consider two gold blocks, Block A and Block B, both of which are naturally made up of gold atoms
Which block has more mass, Block A or Block B? A
50 grams
= Gold
Atom B
90 grams

4. Mass and Volume Relationship
If an object has Mass, it takes up space
Volume measures how much space an object takes up
It is measured in either milliliters (mL) or centimeters cubed (cm3)
Once again, consider our two gold blocks, Blocks A and B
Which Block has more Volume?
In other words, which block takes up more space?
Because Block B has more Mass, it will have a greater volume
We could verify this by submerging both Blocks in equal amounts of water
Notice, Block B displaced more water, therefore Block B has a greater volume A B
= Gold
Atom

5. What is the relationship between Mass and Volume?
Mass is a measure of how much stuff or matter an object is made of
Mass is measured in grams (g)
If an object has Mass, it has Volume
Volume is a measure of how space an object takes up
Volume is measured in Liters (L) or milliliters (mL)

6. Metric System
1 meter also contains 100 centimeters (1 meter = 100 centimeters)
1 meter also contains 1000 tiny millimeters (1 meter = 1000 millimeters
In science, we use the metric system
The metric system is a measurement system based on mulitples or powers of ten
Consider a meter stick, which we use to measure length
1 meter contains 10 decimeters (1 meter = 10 decimeters)
1000 millimeters
1 meter
100 centimeters
1 meter
10 decimeters
1 meter
1 meter
= 10 decimeters
= 100 centimeters
= 1000 millimeters

7. 1 meter
= 10 decimeters
= 100 centimeters
= 1000 millimeters
Metric System
Notice, as each UNIT became 10 times smaller a different prefix (deci-, centi-, or milli-) was put in front of the base unit METER
The same is true if Units become larger
Each prefix tells us how large or small a Unit is
Meter

8. Metric System A
Gram
In the metric system, we use the meter(m) to measure length, the gram (g) to measure mass and the liter(L) to measure volume
These are the base UNITS of the metric system
Prefixes are placed in front of each base unit to indicate the size and scale of each unit (10 times bigger or 10 times smaller)
Liter
Meter

9. What is the Metric System?
Measurement system based on multiples of 10
The meter(m) is used to measure length, the gram (g) to measure mass and the liter(L) or milliliter (mL) is used to measure volume
Each prefix is either tens time larger or ten times smaller than the next
Please write down the table for your notes:
Prefix
Number
Kilo-
1000
Hecto-
100
Decka- 10
Base Unit:
Meter, Gram, Liter 1
Deci-
0.1
Centi-
0.01
Milli-
0.001

10. Unit Conversions and Dimensional Analysis
Have you calculated your height in Inches or your age in minutes?
If so, you have performed unit conversions
A unit conversion is a method of changing a measurement from one unit to another
Unit conversions are done using dimensional analysis
In chemistry, many of the calculations will involve unit conversions and dimensional analysis
Dimensional analysis  is a mathematical system using conversion factors to move from one unit of measurement to a different unit of measurement

11. Steps for Solving Dimensional Analysis Problems
Suppose you have a guitar that is 1 meter in length and you want to know the guitars length in millimeters.
Through a series of steps, we can solve this problem:
3. Set up the calculation so the units cancel
1. Start with what the problem gives you
1 meter = ??? millimeters
4. Solve the problem
2. What are the conversion factors?
1 meter
= millimeters
1 meter
1000 millimeters

12. Steps for Solving Dimensional Analysis Problems
A year is 365 days long. How many minutes are in 1 year?
Through a series of steps, we can solve this problem:
3. Set up the calculation so the units cancel
1. Start with what the problem gives you
4. Solve the problem
2. What are the conversion factors?
365 days
= 525,600 minutes
1 day
1 hour
24 hours
60 minutes

13. What is Dimensional Analysis?
A mathematical system using conversion factors to move from one unit of measurement to a different unit of measurement
Steps to solve:
Start with what you are given
What are the conversion factors?
Set up the problem so units cancel
Solve the problem

14. Practice:
You walked 5 kilometers to school today. How many meters did you walk?
3. Set up the calculation so the units cancel
1. Start with what the problem gives you
4. Solve the problem
2. What are the conversion factors?
5 kilometers
= meters
1000 meters
1 kilometer

15. Units of Temperature
Celsius
-273o 0o
273
100o
373
Kelvin
When measuring temperature, two units of temperature you will need to become familiar with is the Kelvin and degrees Celsius Scale
On the Celsius scale water boils at 100oC and on the Kelvin scale water boils at 373 K
As temperature cools, water freezes at 0oC and 273 K
The lowest possible temperature, where all molecular motion stops occurs at -273oC and 0 K

16. Units of Temperature
Celsius
-273o 0o
273
100o
373
Kelvin
To convert bewteen the Units of temperature we will use the following equation: oC = K
For example, lets say we want to 100oC into Kelvin
Substituting our value into the equation we get: oC = K
We could verify this by checking our thermometers to the right, notice 100oC matches up and agrees with 373K
100oC
373 K

17. Practice: Convert 293 K into degrees Celsius using the equation: 293 K
oC = K
oC = K - 273
oC = 10oC
293 K
Kelvin
293 K
??? oC
10oC

18. Summary (you can always write your own summary)
Explain the relationship between mass and volume in your own words:
What do we use to measure mass, volume and length?
What do the following metric prefixes represent: centi-, milli-, and kilo-
If you are 60 inches tall, how many centimeters tall are you? Conversion factor:
Convert 310 Kelvin into degrees Celsius:
2.54 centimeters
1 inch