First of all, a chemical substance is a pure body that can be found in three states: solid, liquid or gas. These bodies can go from one state to another depending on temperature and pressure conditions.
Each chemical species is characterized by properties that are unique to it and therefore allow it to be distinguished from others. These properties can be used to identify a chemical species on several occasions:
- To determine the nature of an unknown chemical substance.
- To verify the nature of a chemical substance extracted from a mixture.
- To verify the nature of a chemical substance obtained during a chemical synthesis.
Thus, depending on the starting matrix, it is possible, with the help of numerous analytical methods, to determine the fundamental properties of a chemical substance, in particular the melting, boiling and solidification temperatures, the density, the miscibility or the purity