Bonding structure and the properties of matter — AQA GCSE Practice Question 04.5

How to approach this question

Think about the states of matter. Melting is the change from a solid to a liquid.\n1. Energy: Does the substance need to absorb or release energy to melt? (Think about heating ice to make water).\n2. Arrangement: Are atoms in a solid more or less ordered than in a liquid?

Full Answer

A.The atoms gain energy and their arrangement becomes less ordered.✓ Correct

The atoms gain energy and their arrangement becomes less ordered.

Melting is a change of state from solid to liquid. For this to happen, the substance must be heated, meaning the particles (atoms in this case) **gain energy**. This energy is used to overcome the strong forces of attraction holding the atoms in their fixed, regular positions in the solid lattice. As a result, the atoms can move past each other, and their arrangement becomes random or **less ordered**. This corresponds to the liquid state.

Common mistakes

✗ Confusing melting with freezing (losing energy).\n✗ Thinking that the arrangement becomes more ordered.

What happens to the atoms in pure tin as the tin melts?

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Full Answer

Common mistakes

Practice the full AQA GCSE Chemistry Foundation Tier Paper 1

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