BASICS OF CHEMISTRY

LEARNING MOTIVATION: Why study Chemistry as a Cosmetologist? As a Cosmetologist, it is essential that you understand the chemicals you will be using in the services you perform. Throughout the course of study, we stress the importance of safety in the workplace. The knowledge you will gain in this unit of study will be invaluable to your own safety and that of your client. When you think about it, chemistry has an important role in every product you use, from the water used to shampoo hair, to the cosmetics applied during a facial, to the chemicals used to chemically reform the hair’s texture, to the products used to care for the hands, feet, and nails.

Chemistry may be a frightening subject to you, but there is no need for that, especially when you think about what chemistry is. It is simply the study of matter, its composition, structure, and properties, and the changes it may undergo under different chemical conditions. Since matter is anything that occupies space and has weight, it is significant to our profession. Remember, this unit is not to make you a scientist or chemist, but to help you develop a comfort level with the basics and your ability to discuss chemistry in relation to your profession. This ability will make a significant contribution to your many client consultations. Water and air are 100 percent chemicals, even your body is completely composed of chemicals. Most chemicals we come in contact with are harmless.

CHEMISTRY IS THE SCIENCE THAT DEALS WITH THE COMPOSITION, STRUCTURES, AND PROPERTIES OF MATTER AND HOW MATTER CHANGES UNDER DIFFERENT CONDITIONS. THERE IS TWO KINDS OF CHEMISTRY: ORGANIC CHEMISTRY AND INORGANIC CHEMISTRY. ORGANIC CHEMISTRY: IS THE STUDY OF SUBSTANCES THAT CONTIN CARBON, WHICH ALLOWS THEM TO BURN, ALL LIVING OR FORMERLY ALIVE THINGS CONTAIN CARBON. JUST BECAUSE SOMETHING IS ORGANIC DOES NOT ALWAYS MEAN IT IS NATURAL OR SAFE. EXAMPLES OF CARBON CAN BE FOUND IN ALL PLANTS, ANIMALS, SOFT COAL, NATURAL GAS. MOST ORGANIC SUBSTANCES WILL BURN. THEY ARE NOT SOLUBLE (NOT ABLE TO BE LIQUIFIED) IN WATER, BUT THEY DO DISSOLVE IN ORGANIC SOLVENTS, SUCH AS ALCOHOL AND BENZENE. EXAMPLES ARE GRASS, TREES, GASOLINE, OIL, SOAPS, DETERGENTS, PLASTICS, POISON IVY, MOTOR OIL, SYNTHETIC FABRICS, PESTICIDES, FERTILIZERS AND ANTIBIOTICS.

INORGANIC CHEMISTRY: IS THE STUDY OF SUBSTANCES THAT DO NOT CONTAIN CARBON, MOST INORGANIC SUBSTANCES DO NOT BURN AND WERE NEVER ALIVE. EXAMPLES OF INORGANIC SUBSTANCES ARE: METALS, MINERALS, GLASS, WATER AND AIR, IRON, LEAD, MINERALS AND IODINE. TITANIUM DIOXIDE ( A WHITE PIGMENT USED TO MAKE WHITE ENHANCEMENT PWODERS, AND NAIL POLISH ARE ALSO EXAMPLES OR INORGANIC SUBSTANCES. Since chemistry is the science that deals with matter, it is essential that we develop an understanding of what matter really is. MATTER is anything that occupies space, has physical and chemical properties, and exists in one of three forms: SOLIDS, LIQUIDS AND GASES. All matter is made up of chemicals. Light and electricity are forms of energy, and energy is not matter. Everything known to exist in the universe is either made of matter or energy. No exceptions.

Matter exits in the form of elements, compounds, and mixtures. ELEMENTS: An element is the basic unit and simplest form of all matter. It cannot be broken down into a simpler substance without loss of identity. All matter in the universe is made up of 90 different naturally occurring elements. They are identified by a letter symbol – Remember the acronym COHNS? C – CARBON O – OXYGEN H – HYDROGEN N – NITROGEN S – SULFER ATOMS: The smallest particle of an element that is capable of showing the properties of that element. Atoms are the particles from which all matter is composed. EXAMPLE: If you took a piece of gold (element) and divided it into small and smaller pieces, you

Would eventually come to a particle so small that it no longer showed the properties of the element. ( It would no longer be recognizable as gold.) An atom cannot be divided into simpler substances by ordinary chemical means. MOLECULES: Two or more atoms which are joined together chemically. Example: Water is made from hydrogen and oxygen. Carbon Dioxide is made from carbon atoms and oxygen atoms. When two of the same atoms are joined, the result is an element. When two different atoms are joined, the result is a compound. There are two types of molecules: elemental molecules and compound molecules. ELEMENTAL MOLECULE: A chemical combination of atoms of the same element in definite fixed proportions: the air we breathe is an elemental molecule. (Two atoms of oxygen- O20), The ozone in the atmosphere is an elemental molecule. (Three atoms of oxygen-03)

COMPOUND MOLECULE: Chemical compounds of two or more atoms of different elements in definite fixed proportions. Sodium Chloride (NaCI), or common table salt, is a compound molecule that contains one atom of sodium (NA) and one atom of chlorine (CI). Compounds can be divided into four classes: OXIDES: Compounds of any element combine with oxygen. Example: combination of elements you will work with as a Cosmo is 2 parts hydrogen and 2 parts oxygen, which create the known compound – Hydrogen Peroxide ( developer) ACIDS: Compounds of hydrogen, a nonmetal and sometimes oxygen that release hydrogen in a solution. Example: nitrogen +hydrogen+ oxygen= nitric acid (NHO) which is used in making dyes. You can test for acidity with litmus paper. Acids turn litmus paper red. Acids also have a sour taste, example vinegar and lemons.

STATES OF MATTER: All matter exists in three different physical forms called STATES OF MATTER, they are: solids, liquids, and gases. Matter takes on one of these forms or states depending on its temperature. Water can take on all three forms – water (liquid) to ice (solid) to boiling (steam = gas) Water stays the same chemical but becomes a different physical form. When one chemical changes its state of matter, the change is called a physical change. SOLIDS: Have a definite shape, volume, and weight (roller, brush, orangewod sticks, ice. LIQUIDS: Have a definite volume and weight but not a definite shape: (water takes on the shape of its container.

GASES: Does not have a definite volume or shape (steam) Can never be liquid at normal temperatures or pressures. EX: propellant in hairspray, mousse, propane. PHYSICAL AND CHEMICAL PROPERTIES: There are two types of properties, they are Physical and Chemical. Physical Properties: Those characteristics determined without a chemical reaction; they do not cause a chemical change in the identity of a substance. Examples: color, odor, weight and density. Chemical Properties: Those characteristics that can only be determined with a chemical reaction and cause a chemical change in the identity of a substance. Ex: iron to rust, wood into ashes, newspaper discoloring in the sun, oxidation of hair color, polymerization of artificial nail enhancements.