Test Booklet

2021 FRQ
1. For parts of the free response question that require calculations, clearly show the method used and the
steps involved in arriving at your answers. You must show your work to receive credit for your answer.
Examples and equations may be included in your answers where appropriate.

Answer the following questions related to .

(a) The reaction of and to form is represented above. The reaction has been studied in
order to maximize the yield of .

(i) Calculate the value of , in , at .

(ii) Calculate the value of the equilibrium constant, , at .

Bond Average Bond Enthalpy

(b) Based on the average bond enthalpies in the table above and the value of , calculate the value of the
bond enthalpy.

(c) Although the reaction is thermodynamically favorable at , it does not occur to an observable extent at
this temperature. Explain how the bond enthalpy affects the rate of the reaction.

(d) The reaction is usually carried out at a very high temperature in the presence of a catalyst. Explain why the
reaction is thermodynamically unfavorable at very high temperatures. Justify your answer in terms of ,
, and their effect on .

(e) Although the forward reaction represented above is thermodynamically unfavorable at very high temperatures,
it can be used to produce if the is continually removed from the reaction vessel. Explain in terms of
and why this method works.

The boiling points of and are given in the table below.

Substance Boiling Point

(f)
f) A udent claims that condenses at a much lower temperature than because has stronger
intermolecular forces than does. There are two errors in the student’s reasoning. Identify the student’s errors
and explain your answer in terms of the specific types of forces involved.

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 Test Booklet

2021 FRQ

2. For parts of the free response question that require calculations, clearly show the method used and the
steps involved in arriving at your answers. You must show your work to receive credit for your answer.
Examples and equations may be included in your answers where appropriate.

Answer the following questions about hydrogen and oxygen gases.

(a) A particle-level representation of is shown in the balloon below on the left. The balloon on the right
contains the same volume of at the same temperature and pressure. In the balloon on the right, draw a
representation of with the appropriate number and distribution of particles.

(b) The graph below shows the Maxwell-Boltzmann distribution for . On the same graph, draw the
distribution curve for at the same temperature.

To generate the and the , a student performs electrolysis of water, represented by the equation
above. The student collects the gases in tubes and then adjusts the position of one of them so that the water levels
inside and outside of the tube are the same, as shown in the following diagram.

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 Test Booklet

2021 FRQ

(c) Is the gas collected in tube or ? Justify your answer.

(d) What volume should the student report for the gas in tube ?

(e) Is produced at the anode or cathode? Justify your answer in terms of oxidation numbers.

(f) The atmospheric pressure in the lab was at . The vapor pressure of water at is
. Calculate the pressure of dry gas in tube .

(g) The value of for the electrolysis of water is . In a second trial of the experiment, the power
source was replaced with a voltmeter. Would the volume of hydrogen gas produced be greater than, less than, or
equal to the volume produced in the original experiment? Justify your answer.

(h) The student considers the reverse reaction and proposes a mechanism with a single, elementary step as shown
below.

Explain, in terms of particle collisions, why this mechanism is unlikely to be correct.

AP Chemistry Page 5 of 8
 AP CHEMISTRY Test Booklet

2021 FRQ

3. For parts of the free response question that require calculations, clearly show the method used and the
steps involved in arriving at your answers. You must show your work to receive credit for your answer.
Examples and equations may be included in your answers where appropriate.

Answer the following questions related to .

(a) Two possible Lewis electron-dot diagrams for are shown above. Explain in terms of formal charges why
diagram is the better diagram.

(b) Identify the hybridization of the valence orbitals of the atom in the molecule represented in diagram
.

(c) A sample of dry ice, , is added to an empty balloon. After the balloon is sealed, the
sublimes and the in the balloon eventually reaches a temperature of and pressure of
. The physical change is represented by the following equation.

(i) What is the sign (positive or negative) of the enthalpy change for the process of sublimation? Justify your
answer.

(ii) List all the numerical values of the quantities, with appropriate units, that are needed to calculate the
volume of the balloon.

(iii) Calculate the final volume, in liters, of the balloon.

(d) reacts with water to form , which quickly ionizes in water to form and
, as shown in the following equation.

(i) Identify one of the conjugate acid-base pairs in the equation above.

(ii) When the concentration of in water increases, more forms. Does the increase in the
formation of cause the value of the reaction quotient, , for the system to increase, decrease, or
remain the same? Justify your answer.

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 Test Booklet

2021 FRQ

(e) A student investigates the acid-base properties of . The reaction of with

is represented below.

(i) The student measured the of a solution of as 9.68. Calculate the concentration
of in the solution.

(ii) The expression for the reaction of with is given above. Calculate the value of
for the reaction.

(iii) The student then carried out a second experiment at the same temperature to determine . In the
experiment, the student measured the of . Would the value of calculated in
the second experiment be greater than, less than, or equal to the value of calculated in part ? Justify
your answer.

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 AP CHEMISTRY Test Booklet

2021 FRQ

4. For parts of the free response question that require calculations, clearly show the method used and the
steps involved in arriving at your answers. You must show your work to receive credit for your answer.
Examples and equations may be included in your answers where appropriate.

A student wishes to determine the concentration of in a solution of . The student

combines of with excess and observes the formation of a white
precipitate. The formation of the precipitate is represented by the following equation.

(a) Write the balanced net ionic equation for the precipitation reaction.

The student collects the precipitate by filtration and measures the mass of the filter paper and precipitate every
minutes as it dries. The student records the data in the following table.

Mass of dry filter paper

Mass of filter paper and precipitate immediately after filtration
Mass of filter paper and precipitate after minutes
Mass of filter paper and precipitate after minutes
Mass of filter paper and precipitate after minutes

(b) Use the data above to calculate the number of moles of (molar mass ) that
precipitated.

(c) Calculate the concentration of in the original solution of .

(d) The concentration of determined by the student is significantly higher than the actual concentration
of . Based on the student’s data table, identify an error in the experimental procedure that led to this
result.

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 Test Booklet

2021 FRQ

5. For parts of the free response question that require calculations, clearly show the method used and the
steps involved in arriving at your answers. You must show your work to receive credit for your answer.
Examples and equations may be included in your answers where appropriate.

A student determines the mass percent of iron in a sample of iron ore by doing a redox titration. The student finds
the mass of the sample and then dissolves it in acid to a total volume of . Using a buret, the student
titrates the solution with . The following reaction occurs during the titration.

The student collects the following data.

Mass of iron ore in original sample

Buret reading at end point
Initial buret reading

(a) How many moles of reacted with the ?

(b) Assuming that all the iron in the ore was , calculate the mass percent of iron in the ore sample.

(c) The student learns that the actual mass percent of iron in the ore sample is greater than the experimental value
calculated in part (b). The student claims that the difference between the actual and experimental values could
have been caused by rinsing the buret with distilled water just prior to filling it with .
Do you agree with the student's claim? Explain your reasoning.

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 Test Booklet

2021 FRQ

6. For parts of the free response question that require calculations, clearly show the method used and the
steps involved in arriving at your answers. You must show your work to receive credit for your answer.
Examples and equations may be included in your answers where appropriate.

The three stable isotopes of are , , and . A rock sample from another planet has a
different distribution of the three stable isotopes than what is found on Earth. A partial mass spectrum for in
the rock sample is shown below.

(a) Draw a line on the graph to show the mass of the missing isotope and its percent abundance.

(b) Use the completed mass spectrum to calculate the average atomic mass of on the other planet.

(c) The first ionization energy of magnesium samples found on Earth is experimentally determined to be
. If a similar experiment is conducted to determine the first ionization energy of magnesium in the
rock sample from another planet, will it be greater than, less than, or equal to the first ionization energy of
magnesium found on Earth? Explain your reasoning.

(d) A table of successive ionization energies for and an unknown element is shown above. Predict the identity
of the unknown element.

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 Test Booklet

2021 FRQ

7. For parts of the free response question that require calculations, clearly show the method used and the
steps involved in arriving at your answers. You must show your work to receive credit for your answer.
Examples and equations may be included in your answers where appropriate.

A student conducts an experiment to determine the value of for the dissolution of . The
student dissolves of in room-temperature water in a beaker and measures the temperature
over time. The data are given in the graph above.

(a) The student touches the side of the beaker after the dissolution has occurred and observes that it is cold. What
experimental evidence is consistent with the student's observation?

(b) Is the dissolution of endothermic or exothermic? Justify your answer in terms of the flow of
energy between the system and surroundings.

(c) The student calculated the energy change for the dissolution to be . Based on this value, calculate
in .

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