Is a chemical just another word for an element? Is a compound a chemical? How about an enzyme? How about a coenzyme? Is a molecule a chemical?
What is a chemical, and what ISN’T a chemical? And why is that?
In: 0
If you look at [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chemical_substance](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chemical_substance)
>A chemical substance is a form of matter having constant chemical composition and characteristic properties.[1][2] Some references add that chemical substance cannot be separated into its constituent elements by physical separation methods, i.e., without breaking chemical bonds.[3] Chemical substances can be simple substances,[4] chemical compounds, or alloys. Chemical elements may or may not be included in the definition, depending on expert viewpoint
So all molecules are by themself, sometimes individual atoms are included but not always. Coffee is not a chemical because it is made up of multiple things you can separate, the Caffeine, water etc in the coffee are chemicals.
Everyday usage can be something else and it might be something added that is usually not there
A chemical is a certain molecule. It is made it elements stuck together in a certain way. Elements are the building blocks. If these same elements are separated, rearranged, added to, etc we would call it a different molecule or chemical.
Enzymes are very complex molecules which can change other molecules.
What isn’t a chemical? A mix of chemicals may have a name, such as naphtha or cake 🍰, but because there is a variety of chemicals at play we wouldn’t talk about it as a chemical
Start with the elements, which are each an atom with a different number of protons. Those are chemicals.
Those atoms can bond by sharing electrons, these form molecules and compounds. These are also chemicals. Each of those is defined by the amounts of each element it contains. They have specific formulas.
So water H2O and salt NaCl are both chemicals, but salt water doesn’t have a specific formula, because you can combine the salt and water in different quantities. So salt water is a solution, a mixture of multiple individual chemicals.
Theres also differences in how molecules and compounds bond. Water is made up of multiple individual water molecules, whereas salt is a continuous structure that can be any size provided it has a 1 to 1 ratio of sodium and chlorine.
My understanding of biology is that enzymes would fit the, ‘single structure of a specific size’ definition of molecules which are chemicals.
Latest Answers