"Explain" questions — IB DP Chemistry Higher Level (2023 syllabus)
103 questions · chemistry · View as Markdown
How to answer
WHAT + WHY. Every point paired with a because. Structure: X happens because Y. This causes Z because … Assessment Objective: AO2. Every "explain" answer on this spec is marked against exactly this pattern.
Sample questions
- Explain why the first ionisation energy of oxygen is lower than that of nitrogen, despite oxygen having a greater nuclea…
- Explain why the boiling point of hydrogen fluoride (HF) is significantly higher than that of hydrogen chloride (HCl), de…
- Explain why high-density polyethylene (HDPE) has a higher melting point and greater tensile strength than low-density po…
- Explain why buckminsterfullerene (C₆₀) has a significantly lower melting point than diamond, despite both being allotrop…
- Explain why increasing the concentration of a reactant in solution increases the rate of a chemical reaction, with refer…
- Explain why the first ionisation energy of sulfur is lower than that of phosphorus, despite sulfur having a greater nucl…
- Explain why magnesium is a more effective reducing agent than iron, using standard electrode potentials to support your …
- Explain why, at a given temperature, the particles in a sample of liquid water have a range of kinetic energies rather t…