The physical world around us is made up of matter. With our five senses we can recognize or perceive various types of matter. Some are easily seen as a stone, which can be seen and held in the hand, others are less easily recognized or cannot be perceived by one of the senses; for example, air. The matter is anything that has mass and weight, occupies a place in space, impresses our senses and experience the phenomenon of inertia (resistance offered to change positions).
What is matter
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The definition of matter, according to physics, is everything that makes up that which occupies a region in space-time, or, as its etymological origin describes it, it is the substance from which all things are made. In other words, the concept of matter establishes that it is everything present in the Universe that has mass and volume, that can be measured, perceived, quantified, observed, that occupies a space-time place and that is governed by the laws of nature..
In addition to this, the matter present in objects has energy (the ability of bodies to do work, such as moving or changing from one state to another), which allows it to propagate in space-time (which is a concept of space and time combined: which object occupies a certain space at a specific point on the timeline). It is important to note that not all forms of matter that have energy have mass.
There is matter in everything, since it appears in different physical states; therefore, it can exist both in a hammer and inside a balloon. There are also different types; so a living body is matter, as well as an inanimate object.
The definition of matter also indicates that it is composed of atoms, which are an infinitesimal unit of matter, which was thought to be the smallest, until it was discovered that, in turn, it is made up of other smaller particles (the electrons, which have a negative charge; protons, which have a positive charge; and neutrons, whose charge is neutral or have none).
There are 118 types of them, which are mentioned in the Periodic Table of the Elements, which are matters of a single type of atom, while compounds are substances that are made up of two or more atoms, for example, water (hydrogen and oxygen). In turn, molecules are part of matter, and are defined as groups of atoms with an established configuration, whose bond is chemical or electromagnetic.
An object or anything in the world can be made up of different types of matter, such as a cake or a grain of salt, and different kinds of materials can be obtained if their physical state changes. This modification can be physical or chemical. Physical modification occurs when the appearance of the object is altered or transformed, while chemistry occurs when there is an alteration in its atomic composition.
The subject is ranked according to its level of complexity. In the case of living organisms, from the simplest to the most complex, in the classification of matter, we have:
- Subatomic: Particles that make up the atom: protons (+), neutrons (no charge) and electrons (-).
- Atomic: Minimum unit of matter.
- Molecular: Groups of two or more atoms, which can be of the same or different type, and form a different class of matter.
- Cell: Minimum unit of all living organisms, made up of complex molecules.
- Tissue: Group of cells whose function is the same.
- Organs: Composition of tissues in a member that fulfills some function.
- System or apparatus: Composition of organs and tissues that work together for a specific function.
- Organism: It is the set of organs, systems, cells, of a living being, the individual. In this case, although it is part of a group of many similar ones, it is unique with a DNA that is different from all the others of its species.
- Population: Similar organisms that are grouped together and live in the same space.
- Species: The combination of all populations of organisms of the same type.
- Ecosystem: Connection of different species through food chains in a particular environment.
- Biome: Groups of ecosystems within a region.
- Biosphere: Set of all living beings and the environment in which they are related.
Characteristics of matter
To define what matter is, it is important to mention that it has characteristics. The characteristics of matter are varied according to the physical state in which they occur, that is, according to the formation and structure that make up the atoms and how united they are to each other. Each and every one of them will determine how a body, object, substance or mass looks or interacts. But there are characteristics that are common to everything that is composed of matter, and they are the following:
1. They present different states of aggregation of matter: solid, liquid, gas and plasma. In addition to these physical states of matter, there are two less well-known states, which are superfluid (which do not have viscosity and can flow without any type of resistance in an infinite way in a closed circuit) and supersolid (matter that is solid and liquid when same time), and it is thought that helium can present all states of matter.
2. They have mass, which would be the amount of matter in a given volume or area.
3. They present weight, which represents the extent to which gravity will exert pressure on said object; that is to say, how much attraction force has the earth on it.
4. They show temperature, which is the amount of heat energy present in them. Between two bodies with the same temperature, there will be no transfer of the same, therefore, it will remain the same in both; On the other hand, in two bodies with different temperatures, the hotter one will transfer its heat energy to the colder one.
5. They have volume, which represents the amount of space that they occupy in a given place, and is given by length, mass, porosity, among other attributes.
6. They have impenetrability, which means that each body can occupy one space and only one space at a time, so that, when an object tries to occupy the space of another, one of these two will be displaced.
7. They have density, which is the ratio of the mass to the volume of the object. From highest to lowest density in the states, there are: solids, liquids and gases.
8. There is homogeneous and heterogeneous matter. In the first case, it is almost impossible to identify what makes it up, even with the help of a microscope; while in the second, you can easily see the elements that are in it and differentiate them.
9. It has compressibility, which is the ability to reduce its volume if it is subjected to external pressures, for example, temperature.
In addition to this, changes in the state of matter can be highlighted, which are those processes in which the state of aggregation of a body changes its molecular structure to transform into another state. They are part of the intensive properties of matter, and these are:
- Merger. It is the process in which matter in a solid state is transformed into a liquid state through the application of heat energy.
- Freezing and solidification. It is when a liquid becomes solid through a process of cooling it, turning its structure into a much stronger and more resistant.
- Sublimation. It is the process in which, by adding heat energy, the atoms of certain solid bodies will move quickly to become gas without going through a previous liquid state.
- Deposition or crystallization. By eliminating heat from a gas, it can cause the particles that make it up to group together to form several solid crystals, without having to go through a liquid state previously.
- Boiling, vaporization or evaporation. It is the process by which, when heat is applied to a liquid, it will turn into a gas, as its atoms separate.
- Condensation and liquefaction. It is the reverse process of evaporation, in which when cold is applied to a gas, its particles will slow down and get closer to each other until they form a liquid again.
What are the properties of matter
The properties of matter are diverse, since there are a large number of components in them, but they will present physical, chemical, physico-chemical, general and specific properties. Not all types of matter will show all these properties, since, for example, some apply to some type of substance, object or mass, especially depending on its state of aggregation.
Among the main general properties of matter, we have:
Extension
This is part of the physical properties of matter, since it refers to the extent and amount of matter that it occupies in space. It means that they are extensive properties: volume, length, kinetic energies (it depends on its mass and is given by its displacement) and potential (given by its position in space), among others.
Dough
It refers to the amount of matter that an object or body has, not contingent on its extension or position; that is, the amount of mass present in it is not related to how much volume it occupies in space, so an object whose extension is small can have a huge amount of mass and vice versa. The perfect example is black holes, which have an unquantifiable amount of mass relative to their extent in space.
Inertia
In the concept of matter, this is the property that objects have of maintaining their state of rest, or continuing their movement, except if a force outside it modifies their position in space.
Porosity
Between the atoms that make up the definition of matter in a body, there are empty spaces, which, depending on one or another material, these spaces will be larger or smaller. This is called porosity, which means that it is the opposite of compaction.
Divisibility
It is the ability of bodies to fragment into smaller pieces, even at molecular and atomic sizes, to the point of disintegration. This division can be the product of mechanical and physical transformations, but it will not transform its chemical composition, and it will not change the essence of what matter is.
Elasticity
This refers to one of the main properties of matter, and in this case it is the ability of the object to return to its original volume after it has been subjected to a compression force that deforms it. However, there is a limit to this property and there are materials more prone to elasticity than others.
In addition to those mentioned above, it is important to highlight the other physical properties of matter and chemical properties of matter that exist and are numerous. Between them:
1. Physical properties:
a) Intensive or intrinsic (specific properties)
- Appearance: Primarily in what state the body is and what it looks like.
- Color: It also has to do with physical appearance, but there are substances that have different colors.
- Smell: It depends on its composition, and is perceived by smell.
- Taste: How the substance is perceived to taste.
- Melting, boiling, freezing and sublimation point: The point at which a matter goes from being a solid to a liquid; liquid to fizzy; liquid to solid; and solid to gaseous; respectively.
- Solubility: They dissolve when mixed with a liquid or solvent.
- Hardness: Scale in which a material will allow to be scratched, cut and crossed by another.
- Viscosity: Resistance of a liquid to flow.
- Surface tension: It is the ability of a fluid to resist the increase of its surface.
- Electrical and thermal conductivity: The ability of a material to conduct electricity and heat.
- Malleability: Property that allows them to deform without breaking.
- Ductility: Ability to deform and form threads of the material.
- Thermal decomposition: When heat is applied, the substance is chemically transformed.
b) Extensive or extrinsic (general properties)
- Mass: Amount of matter in the body.
- Volume: The space that the body occupies.
- Weight: The pushing force that gravity has on the object.
- Pressure: The ability to push "out" of what is around them.
- Inertia: The ability to remain immobile unless an external force moves it.
- Length: The extent of a single-dimensional object in space.
- Kinetic and potential energy: Due to its movement and position in space.
2. Chemical Properties:
- PH: Level of acidity or alkalinity of substances.
- Combustion: The ability to burn with oxygen, in which it releases heat and carbon dioxide.
- Ionization energy: Energy received for an electron to escape from its atoms.
- Oxidation: Ability to form complex elements through the loss or gain of electrons.
- Corrosion: It is the ability of a substance to damage or corrupt the structure of a material.
- Toxicity: The extent to which a substance can harm a living organism.
- Reactivity: Propensity to combine with other substances.
- Flammability: Ability to generate a heat detonation caused by high external temperatures.
- Chemical stability: The ability of a substance to react to oxygen or water.
The states of aggregation of matter
Matter can appear in different physical states. This means that its consistency, among other characteristics, will be different according to the structure of its atoms and molecules, which is why it speaks of the specific properties of matter. Among the main states that can be achieved are the following:
Solid
Solid bodies have the peculiarity of having their atoms very close to each other, which gives them hardness and they resist being crossed or cut by another solid. In addition, they have malleability, which allows them to deform under pressure without necessarily having to fragment.
Their composition also allows them to have ductility, which is the possibility of forming threads of the same material when contrary forces come towards the object, allowing it to stretch; and melting point, so that, at a certain temperature, it can transform its state from solid to liquid.
Liquid
The atoms that make up liquids are united but with less force than solids; They are also vibrating rapidly, which allows them to flow and their viscosity or resistance to movement will depend on what type of liquid it is (the more viscous, the less fluid). Its shape will be determined by the container that contains it.
Like solids, they have a boiling point, at which they will cease to be liquid and become gaseous; and they also have a freezing point, at which they will cease to be liquid to become solid.
Gaseous
The atoms present in gases are volatile, scattered, and the force of gravity affects them to a lesser extent than previous states of matter. Like the liquid, it has no shape, it will take that of the container or environment where it is.
This state of matter, like liquids, has compressibility and to a greater extent; it also has pressure, which gives them the quality of pushing what is around them. It is also capable of turning into a liquid under high pressure (liquefaction) and eliminating heat energy, it can become a liquid gas.
Plasmatic
This state of matter is one of the least common. Their atoms act similar to gaseous elements, with the difference that they are charged with electricity, although without electromagnetism, which makes them good electrical conductors. By having specific characteristics that are not related to the other three states, it is considered the fourth state of aggregation of matter.
What is the Law of Conservation of Matter?
The Law of Conservation of Matter or Lomonosov-Lavoisier, establishes that no type of matter can be destroyed, but transformed into another with different external characteristics or even at the molecular level, but the mass of it remains. That is, being subjected to some physical or chemical process, it retains the same mass and weight, as well as in its spatial proportions (the volume it occupies).
This discovery was made by Russian scientists Mikhail Lomonosov (1711-1765) and Antoine Laurent Lavoisier (1743-1794). The first observed it for the first time when lead plates did not lose their weight after being melted in a sealed container; however, this finding was not given due importance at the time.
Years later, Lavoisier experimented with a closed container, where he boiled water for 101 days and whose steam did not escape but returned to it. He compared the weights before and after the experiment and concluded that matter is neither created nor destroyed but transformed.
This law has its exception, and it would be in the case of nuclear type reactions, since in them mass can be converted into energy and in the opposite direction, so it is possible to say that they can be "destroyed" or "created ”For a specific purpose, but in reality it is being transformed, even if it is energy.
Examples of matter
Among the main examples of matter, the following can be highlighted by state of aggregation:
- Solid State: A rock, wood, a plate, a steel bar, a book, a block, a plastic cup, an apple, a bottle, a telephone.
- Liquid State: Water, oil, lava, oil, blood, sea, rain, sap, gastric juices.
The gas
- Gaseous State: Oxygen, natural gas, methane, butane, hydrogen, nitrogen, greenhouse gases, smoke, water vapor, carbon monoxide.
- Plasmatic State: Fire, the northern lights, the Sun and other stars, the solar winds, the ionosphere, the electrical discharges of industrial use or use, the matter between the planets, the stars and galaxies, the electrical storms, the neon in form of plasma from neon lamps, plasma screen monitors from televisions or otherwise.
