General Chemistry I: From Atoms to Matter

CHEM 113/3.0

Overview

A quantitative treatment of chemical phenomena and materials. Critical thinking and problem solving are emphasized. Topics include atomic structure and molecular bonding, organic chemistry, and condensed phases. 

Learning Outcomes

In an addition to developing an appreciation for Chemistry as a field of study, students will specifically be able to:

  1. Identify macroscopic models of materials using basic understanding of microscopic models of Matter
  2. Calculate system conditions and measure changes using concepts of gas theory
  3. Describe the development of mathematical models of microscopic level properties
  4. Use Thermodynamics to determine energy changes in isobaric, adiabatic and isothermal system processes, both chemical and physical
  5. Describe phase diagrams for single and multi-component (solutions) systems, including distillations, fractional melting and alloys

Terms

Summer (May–June) 2025
Course Dates
Exam Dates (if applicable)
Delivery Mode
Online

Evaluation

10% - Tutorial Groupwork
10% - Assignments
25% - Virtual Labs
25% - Quizzes
30% - Final Proctored Exam

** Evaluation Subject to Change **

Proctored Exams  
Exam Centre Location, Eligibility, and Fees  

Students enrolled exclusively in online courses may choose one of two options to write this course’s proctored assessments:  

  1. You may choose to write the assessments online under supervision of Examity proctoring services. A $100 fee will be charged to your SOLUS account. This fee is known as the Off Campus Exam Admin Fee and is applied in SOLUS at the earlier of: term tuition posting date, or the date at which exam writing method is changed to online. The fee is assessed once per ASO course with proctored assessments.  
  2. You may choose to write the assessments in-person on Queen’s campus in Kingston at no additional charge.  

Students enrolled in at least one on-campus course are expected to write this course’s proctored assessments on-campus during the scheduled exam time. They will not be permitted to write this course’s proctored assessments online.

Students were prompted to indicate their preferred exam writing method when enrolling in the course in SOLUS. The exam writing method may be changed by contacting the ASO Exams Team at aso.exams@queensu.ca.  

Information for students writing online assessments using Examity

Selected assessments in this course will be administered in onQ using online proctoring provided by Examity, a third-party, cloud-based service. This proctoring solution was chosen to support our efforts in maintaining academic integrity when online proctoring is required. Queen’s has conducted an extensive privacy and security review of Examity and has entered into a binding agreement with terms that address the appropriate collection, use and disclosure of personal information in accordance with Ontario’s privacy legislation. To learn more about online proctoring, please see the information provided by the Office of the University Registrar.  

If you registered to write online with Examity, all information pertaining to the technical requirements and preparation for writing online will be posted in onQ well in advance of your exam. 

The use of Examity as described is unique to courses offered by the Faculty of Arts and Science Online. Other Faculties use online proctoring solutions in different ways under different regulations. Students should  contact the appropriate Faculty examination team if they have questions.  

Timing of Final Examinations  

The exam period dates for each Term are listed on the Faculty of Arts and Science webpage under "Important Dates". Student exam schedules for the Fall Term are posted to SOLUS immediately prior to the Thanksgiving holiday; for the Winter Term they are posted on the Friday before Reading Week, and for the Summer Term they are individually noted on the Arts and Science Online syllabi. Students should not make any travel plans until after the examination schedule has been posted. Exams will not be moved or deferred to accommodate employment, travel/holiday plans or flight reservations. Students experiencing extenuating circumstances preventing them from writing their exams as scheduled should review the information about the Academic Consideration process

Textbook and Materials

ASO reserves the right to make changes to the required material list as received by the instructor before the course starts. Please refer to the Campus Bookstore website at http://www.campusbookstore.com/Textbooks/Search-Engine(link is external) to obtain the most up-to-date list of required materials for this course before purchasing them.

Textbook: The textbook for this class is an Open Access textbook. This textbook is free, and available for you to view/access in various formats.

Laboratory Software: In order to access and complete some course activities/assessments, you are required to purchase this Mastering Chemistry access code from the Queen's Campus Bookstore:

  • Masteringchemistry® Student Access Code Card for General Chemistry
  • Labster (12-month access code)

Time Commitment

Students can expect to spend approximately 20 hours a week (126 hours per term) in study/practice and online activity for CHEM 113.

Additional Information

NOTE: Not normally intended for on-campus degree plans and certificates. 

NOTE: Not appropriate for pre and upper level courses that have a laboratory component.