OS/2 Shareware BBS: 8 Other/08-Other.zip/tablca13.zip/TABLICA.HLP

OS/2 Help File | 1996-03-30 | 41KB | 275 lines

ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 1. Brief Overview ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Tablica/2 is an advanced desktop tool that provides easy access to various data
on nearly all (106) chemical elements known today.  It was designed mainly as a
study aid for high school and college age students, however anyone dealing with
chemistry on a regular basis should benefit from its intuitive design and the
vast amount of information stored therein.

Each element's data may be retrieved by clicking on the appropriate button.
There is nothing more to it. Most operations are just that - a simple mouse
click in the right location.  The table itself does not differ much from the
printed copies in circulation today. It is arranged along standard divisions
into groups and periods, each group labeled in Roman numerals at the top;
liquids, gases, solids and synthetic elements are shown in different colors.

One wishes to believe that Tablica/2 provides correct information, in agreement
with up-to-date literature.  However, as always when dealing with such large
quantities of data, some errors are inevitable. Therefore, if you see anything
out of the ordinary, please notify the author as soon as possible so that any
errors could be corrected before the next consecutive release.  Any suggestions
regarding potential improvements and/or additions to the existing design are
always welcome.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 2. Conventions ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Tablica uses the following symbols and abbreviations to denote
chemical/physical properties:

      Colors: Taking room temperature and atmospheric pressure as the reference
      points, red =gas, blue =liquid, black=solid.  Additionally all synthetic
      elements are displayed in dark yellow.

      aw: atomic weight (based on carbon-12)

      bp: boiling point (Kelvins)

      mp: melting point (Kelvins)

      d: density (grams per cubic centimeter at 300K, except gases, for which
      density is given in grams per liter at 1 atm and 273K)

      ec: electron configuration

      en: electronegativity

      E-cond: electrical conductivity (x1,000,000 inverse ohms inverse
      centimeters at 293K)

      T-cond: thermal conductivity (watts inverse ohms inverse centimeters at
      300K)

      H-vap: heat of vaporization (kilojoules per mole at boiling point)

      H-fus: heat of fusion (kilojoules per mole at melting point)

      IP: first ionization potential (Volts)

      cov-Rad: covalent radius (Angstroms)

      at-Rad: atomic radius (Angstroms, quantum mechanical value for free atom)

      at-Vol: atomic volume (cubic centimeters per mole - calculated from
      density at 300K;  for gases, from the liquid state at boiling point)

      sh: specific heat (Joules per gram per Kelvin at 300K)

      Crystal structures:   a) face centered cubic;    b) body centered cubic;
      c) cubic;    d) hexagonal;    e) rhombohedral;    f) tetragonal;    g)
      orthorhombic;     h) monoclinic.

 Appropriate high-ASCII symbols are used to represent units like Angstrom or
 Ohm.  Tablica makes extensive use of fonts other than the default System font,
 namely Helvetica and Times New Roman.

 Numbers following SI units (e.g. cm3, K-1) should be treated as exponents
 (i.e. centimeters cube, inverse Kelvins).  The constants table uses standard
 scientific notation of the format 0.000E+00.  For the sake of clarity, the
 scrollbox on the periodic table uses a slightly different system: 0.000x10^00.
 To illustrate these conventions:

 1234.55  =  1.23455E+3  = 1.23455x10^3.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 3. Molecular Weight Calculator ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Molecular weight (in grams per mole) of any chemical compound may be computed
by typing its formula in the formula input box.  The computation process takes
place real-time, i.e. as you type.  Proper capitalization of the atomic symbols
is not required, however individual atom types should be separated with at
least one space character.  For clearer understanding of these rules, please
refer to the examples given below:

      C O O H  (equivalent to C O2 H )

      C12 H24 O2 N

      Na Cl  (same as NA CL or na cl or na1 cl1 )

 The "percent" button next to the molecular weight box is used to compute the
 weight fraction of each element in the specified formula.  The numbers are
 expressed in percents and should add up to 100.0.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 4. Tools ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

      Unit Conversion


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 4.1. Unit Conversion ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

The unit conversion utility bundled with Tablica may be used to convert
measurements from one system to another (e.g. from English to metric or vice
versa).  Currently, the number of conversion factors stored in the database is
close to 900.  Therefore slower systems may experience a short delay while
these are loaded into the computer's memory.  To perform the conversion, first
select the conversion type from the alphabetically sorted scrollbox list, then
type in the numerical value in the data entry field.  The converted measure
will be computed on the fly, as you type.

All data used by this utility are stored in the file called convert.tbl. It is
a plain text file with each line in the following format:

name of starting unit ; name of ending unit ; conversion formula

(notice a single space on both sides of each semicolon!)

To convert from inches to yards, the following would have to be defined: yards
; inches ; u2=u1*36

The formula itself can be any valid REXX expression; +, -, *, / operators as
well as parentheses are all supported.

Needless to say, unneeded entries may be deleted altogether, improving
dramatically the overall loading time.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 5. Extras ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Some objects on the main window are designed to display additional information
if selected by double click.  Double-clicking on the boiling point or the
melting point line, for example, gives values of these properties in 3
different temperature scales (Celsius, Kelvin and Fahrenheit), rounded to the
nearest degree.  To find out about the linguistic origin of an element, simply
double click on its name.

Every time a new element is selected, its position within the table is marked
with an oversized blue button such as the one shown here: Those who find
browsing through the data scrollbox too inconvenient, may choose to view most
commonly accessed element information in a separate window.  Just click on that
blue button and enjoy traditional, intuitive data layout, resembling the one of
a 'regular' hard copy periodic table.

Nothing is simpler than a mouse click but finding the right element may be a
hassle if you don't know its position in the periodic table.  Nothing to worry
about. The shortcut box, , allows you to type in the atomic symbol and get an
immediate response from the program which will find the location of the element
for you.  OK, how about looking up elements based on their atomic number?  No
problem.  Just select Atomic numbers from the View menu and all symbols are
instantly replaced with the corresponding atomic numbers.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 6. Additional Data ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

      Chemical Constants

      Enthalpy, Entropy, Free Energy

      Isotope Abundance

      Acidity Constants

      Acid-Base Indicators


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 6.1. Chemical Constants ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

A scroll box containing common constants used in chemistry is available by
selecting the Chemical constants option from the Data menu.  The resulting
dialog window may be resized to match user preferences and kept open alongside
the main form.  Any number of user-defined values may be added by editing the
contents of the pchconst.tbl file located in the Tablica directory.  All
entries in that file are automatically sorted by the program so they always
appear listed in perfect alphabetical order.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 6.2. Enthalpy, Entropy, Free Energy ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Standard molar enthalpies of formation, standard molar free energies of
formation and absolute standard entropies of most common compounds associated
with the currently selected element are available from the Data menu by
choosing the ~G, H, S option.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 6.3. Isotope Abundance ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

To view relative abundance of different isotopes of any particular element,
first click on that element, then select Isotope abundance from the Data menu.
Percentage of each isotope will be displayed in graphical format against atomic
mass.  Two graphing modes are supported for your convenience: bar graph and pie
chart.  You may easily switch between the two by clicking on either of the
radio buttons beneath the picture.

                      Isotope Abundance in Pie Chart Format

                      Isotope Abundance in Bar Graph Format


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 6.4. Acidity Constants ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Ka's as well as pKa's of most common acids are available from the Data╨┐Acids
option.  The Acids dialog works just like any other dialog in Tablica.  In
order to view the acid data, simply select the entry of interest from the
scrollbox.  The scrollbox entries are initially arranged alphabetically,
however sorting by acid strength is also available and performed on the fly
when the right radio button is selected.

Displayed data consist of four fields: Ka, pKa, HA and A(-).  The first two are
the acidity constant and its negative log to the base 10.  HA is simply the
formula of the selected acid, and A(-) the formula of the anion after
dissociation.  Notice that the ion charge is given in parentheses, instead of
the more usual superscript notation.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 6.5. Acid-Base Indicators ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Tablica contains a built-in database of popular acid-base indicators. Select
Data╨┐Acid-base indicators from the main menu bar to display the Indicators
dialog.  There, click on the indicator of interest to view its pH range and
approximate color variation within that range.  It is also possible to limit
the list to just the indicators active within the specified pH range. Keep in
mind that the colors shown on your screen are very approximate and may deviate
somewhat from the real-life colors, especially when low concentrations of acids
or bases are used.

              pH Range and Color Change Associated with Methyl Red


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 7. Registration Information ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

The shareware version of this program is fully functional, not crippled in any
significant way nor subjected to a 30 day trial period.  In fact, there is no
separate commercial version.  A disclaimer pop-up screen will appear at
initialization time and stay on for approximately 10 seconds encouraging you to
register.  To remove it, you must enter valid name/regno combination through
the license menu.

If you haven't done so already, you may become registered by filling out the
accompanying form (register.txt). Mail it together with $15 to:

                                  Peter Rachwal

                               1525 NE 7th Street

                              Gainesville, FL 32601

 The author may also be reached by e-mail at [e-mail].


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 8. References ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Main sources of data used in the Tablica project:

   1. Atkins, P.W.; Physical Chemistry, 4th Ed.; Freeman: New York, 1990.

   2. CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics, 57th Ed.; Weast, R.C., Editor; CRC
      Press: Ohio, 1977.

   3. Holtzlaw, H.F. Jr.; Robinson, W.R; College Chemistry with Qualitative
      Analysis; 8th Ed.; Heath: Lexington, MA, 1988.

   4. Ryssel, H.; Ruge, I.; Ionenimplantation; B.G. Teubner: Stuttgart, 1978.

 (plus a handful of other periodic tables)