DEPARTMENT FOR CURRICULUM,

LIFELONG LEARNING AND EMPLOYABILITY

Directorate for Learning and Assessment Programmes
Educational Assessment Unit
Annual Examinations for Secondary Schools 2023

YEAR 10 CHEMISTRY TIME: 2 hours

Name: ______________________________________

Class: ______________________________________

Useful Data
• Atomic numbers and relative atomic masses are shown in the Periodic Table printed at the
back of this booklet.
• Avogadro’s constant: 6.02 × 1023
• One mole of any gas occupies 22.4 dm3 at standard temperature (0 °C / 273 K)
• pressure (1 atm. / 760 mmHg / 101.3 kPa)
• Faraday constant: 96500 C mol-1
• Q=It

Marks Grid [For Examiner’s use only]

Question Section A Section B

No. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Max Theory
Mark 10 10 10 10 10 10 20 20 20 Total
Actual
Mark

Theory Paper: 85% Practical: 15% Final Score: 100%

Chemistry – Year 10 – 2023 Page 1 of 12

SECTION A: Answer ALL questions in the spaces provided.
This section carries 60 marks.

1) The Periodic Table is an essential tool in Chemistry.

a) Complete the following statements:

i) The horizontal rows are known as: ___________________________________ (1)

ii) The vertical columns are known as: __________________________________ (1)

b) Circle the correct answer:

In the Periodic Table the elements are placed according to the number of:

Neutrons Protons Electrons (1)

c) An element X has an atomic number of 12 and a mass number of 24.

i) Give the electronic configuration of this element.

__________________________________________________________________ (1)

ii) Would you expect X to be a conductor of electricity? Explain your answer.

__________________________________________________________________ (2)

iii) Write the chemical formula of the compound which would form when it reacts with
chlorine.

__________________________________________________________________ (2)

iv) Would you expect element X to be more or less reactive than an element that has
11 protons in its nucleus? Explain your reasoning.

__________________________________________________________________ (2)
Total: 10 marks

2) Iron is a transition metal.

a) Give TWO properties common to all transition metals only.

____________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________ (2)

b) State what you would observe when sodium hydroxide solution is added to
iron(II) sulfate solution.

_________________________________________________________________ (2)

Page 2 of 12 Chemistry – Year 10 – 2023

c) Write an ionic equation for this reaction. Include state symbols.

_________________________________________________________________ (3)

d) What is the colour of a solution containing Fe3+ ions?

_________________________________________________________________ (1)

e) Explain why solutions of Fe2+ ions change colour when they are exposed to air.

_________________________________________________________________ (2)
Total: 10 marks

3) A lab technician had a bottle of hydrochloric acid of concentration 12 mol dm-3. He

wanted to prepare 1 litre of HCl(aq) of concentration 0.5 mol dm-3.
a) State whether hydrochloric acid is a weak or a strong acid. Explain your answer.

____________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________ (2)

b) From the list below circle TWO pieces of apparatus which are required for this
dilution.

Bunsen burner test tube volumetric flask pipette

(2)
c) Give a test which could be used to identify the concentrated acid.

____________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________ (2)

d) Name the place where this dilution should be carried out in the lab. Explain why.

____________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________ (2)

e) Calculate the volume of concentrated acid in cm3 that is required in this dilution.

____________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________ (2)
Total: 10 marks

Chemistry – Year 10 – 2023 Page 3 of 12

4) Diatomic nitrogen is chemically very unreactive; however, nitrogen is found in
some very important compounds.
a) Explain why the nitrogen molecule is very unreactive.

_________________________________________________________________ (1)

b) Ammonia can easily be produced in the lab by heating a hydroxide with an

ammonium compound. Give the equation for the reaction between potassium
hydroxide and ammonium sulfate. Include state symbols.

_________________________________________________________________ (3)

c) Many gases can be dried by bubbling them through concentrated sulfuric acid.
i) Explain why ammonia is not one of these gases.

____________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________ (2)

ii) Name the drying agent which is used to dry ammonia gas.

_________________________________________________________________ (1)

d) Nitrogen, copper, and water are produced when copper(II) oxide is strongly
heated in the presence of ammonia.
i) State what happens to the copper(II) oxide in terms of colour.

_________________________________________________________________ (1)

ii) Explain the role of ammonia in terms of redox reactions.

____________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________ (2)
Total: 10 marks

Page 4 of 12 Chemistry – Year 10 – 2023

5) Brine is a very concentrated solution of sodium chloride. The diagram below
shows the apparatus used in a school laboratory to electrolyse brine.

Source: https://edu.rsc.org/experiments/electrolysis-of-brine/735.article

a) Name the ions which are attracted to the cathode.

_________________________________________________________________ (2)

b) Name the substance produced at the cathode.

_________________________________________________________________ (1)

c) A gas is produced at the anode.

i) Write the half equation for the reaction occurring at the anode.

_________________________________________________________________ (2)

ii) Describe an identification test for this gas.

_________________________________________________________________ (1)

d) In another experiment, a very dilute solution of sodium chloride is electrolysed.

i) Identify the products that would be produced at both electrodes.

Anode: ___________________________________________________________ (1)

Cathode: _________________________________________________________ (1)

ii) Write the half equation for the reaction occurring at the anode.

_________________________________________________________________ (2)
Total: 10 marks

Chemistry – Year 10 – 2023 Page 5 of 12

6) Chlorine, bromine, and iodine are all found in group 7 of the Periodic Table.
a) What is the name given to group 7?

_________________________________________________________________ (1)

b) State ONE physical property common to these elements.

_________________________________________________________________ (1)

c) State which of these elements is the strongest oxidising agent. Explain your
answer.

____________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________ (2)

d) Would you expect Astatine which is found just below iodine in the Periodic Table to
be less or more reactive than iodine?

_________________________________________________________________ (1)

e) Draw a labelled diagram of the apparatus that can be used to carry out a
displacement reaction between chlorine gas and potassium bromide solution.

(2)

f) Explain why such a reaction should be carried out in a fume cupboard.

_________________________________________________________________ (1)

g) Write a balanced chemical equation for the reaction between chlorine gas and
potassium bromide solution.

_________________________________________________________________ (2)
Total: 10 marks

Page 6 of 12 Chemistry – Year 10 – 2023

SECTION B: Answer TWO questions ONLY in the spaces provided.
This section carries 40 marks.

7) This question is about chemical analysis.

a) An element A reacts with oxygen to produce a black insoluble compound B.
Compound B reacts with dilute nitric acid to produce a blue compound C which is
soluble in water. When sodium hydroxide is added to a solution of C, a blue
precipitate D is produced.
i) Identify substances A, B, C, and D. (4)
ii) Give an ionic equation for the reaction taking place when precipitate D is
formed. Include state symbols. (3)
iii) Give TWO observations to describe what happens when substance D is heated
strongly. (2)
iv) State the type of reaction in part (a) (iii). (1)
b) Compound X is a white crystalline powder. When heated with dilute NaOH
solution, a pungent gas Y is produced. A solution of compound X does not form a
precipitate when some barium chloride is added to it. However, a white precipitate
Z is formed when acidified silver nitrate solution is added to it.
i) Identify substances X, Y and Z. (3)
ii) Write an equation for the reaction which produces gas Y. (2)
iii) Describe a test which can be used to confirm the identity of gas Y and state the
expected result. (2)
iv) Barium chloride gave a negative result with compound X. Name the anions which
are detected by a solution of barium chloride. (2)
v) Give the name of the anion which would be present if the precipitate Z had been
yellow instead of white. (1)
Total: 20 marks

8) Lead(II) nitrate decomposes to produce the oxide, nitrogen dioxide and oxygen
when heated strongly.
a) Write an equation for this reaction and include state symbols. (3)
b) Draw a labelled diagram of the setup which can be used whereby the gases produced
can be separated with oxygen being collected over water. (5)
c) Name the apparatus which can be used to collect and measure accurately the
volume of oxygen produced. (1)

Chemistry – Year 10 – 2023 Page 7 of 12

d) In one such experiment, the volume of oxygen produced (measured at STP) was
0.1 dm3.
i) Calculate the mass of lead(II) nitrate which had to be heated to produce 0.1 dm3 of
oxygen. (RFM of Pb(NO3)2 = 331). (3)
ii) State the volume of oxygen which would be expected if the pressure was doubled
but the temperature was kept constant. Explain your reasoning. (3)
iii) Explain in terms of the Kinetic Theory what happens to the gas particles when the
pressure is increased at constant temperature. (2)
e) Lead(II) ions in solution undergo a reaction with iodide ions in solution.
i) Write an ionic equation for this reaction. (2)
ii) State the colour of the precipitate which forms in this reaction. (1)
Total: 20 marks

9) This question is about sulfur and its compounds.

a) Sulfur is the starting material used to produce sulfuric acid by the Contact
Process. First sulfur is burnt in the presence of air to produce sulfur dioxide. The
sulfur dioxide is then reacted with more oxygen under specific conditions to
produce sulfur trioxide. The sulfur trioxide is then reacted with concentrated
sulfuric acid.
i) Write an equation for the equilibrium reaction taking place in the second step of
the Contact Process. (2)
ii) Give the temperature and name the catalyst which are used in this process. (2)
iii) Name the compound which forms when sulfur trioxide reacts with concentrated
sulfuric acid. (1)
iv) Explain why water should not be added directly to sulfur trioxide in the last step of
the process. (1)
b) A solution of potassium carbonate of unknown concentration was found in a
flask. To find its concentration a titration experiment was carried out. A 25 cm3
aliquot of the solution was transferred to a conical flask and titrated against
sulfuric acid of concentration 0.5 mol dm-3. 19 cm3 of sulfuric acid solution were
required for neutralization.
i) Draw a diagram of the burette which is used for such titration experiments. (1)
ii) Write an equation for this reaction, including state symbols. (3)
iii) Calculate the number of moles of acid required for neutralization. (2)
iv) Calculate the number of moles of carbonate present in the 25 cm3 aliquot. (2)
v) Calculate the concentration of the potassium carbonate solution in g dm-3. (3)

Page 8 of 12 Chemistry – Year 10 – 2023

vi) Name the gas produced in this reaction and describe a test which can be used to
confirm its identity. (2)
vii) To confirm the identity of the metal in the carbonate solution, a flame test was
carried out. What colour would be imparted by the potassium ions to the
flame? (1)
Total: 20 marks

Chemistry – Year 10 – 2023 Page 9 of 12

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