Interaction of Matter

Mixture- 

    made up of two or more distinct substances 

    each substance maintains it's own properties

    can be separated physically

Compound- 

    made up of two or more distinct substances 

    new substance with it's own properties created

    chemically combined; cannot be separated physically, only chemically

    compounds are pure substances 

Heterogeneous-

    Consisting of dissimilar elements or parts; not homogeneous

Homogeneous-

    Uniform in structure or composition throughout

Solution- 

     homogeneous mixture

    consists of solvent and solute(s)

Solvent-

    the material in which the solute is dissolved

Solute-

    the substance that is dissolved in the solvent

Saturate-

    to cause a substance to unite with the greatest possible amount of another substance

Supersaturated-

    To cause (a chemical solution) to be more highly concentrated than is normally possible under given conditions of temperature and pressure

Solubility-

    The amount of a substance that can be dissolved in a given amount of solvent at a specified temperature and pressure

Suspension– 

    a heterogeneous mixture from which some particles will slowly settle when left alone for a period of time

Colloid-

    A system in which finely divided particles, which are approximately 1 to 1,000 nm in size, are dispersed within a continuous medium in a manner that prevents them from being filtered easily or settled rapidly

To give you some examples:

Smoke is a colloidal suspension of solid (usually carbon) molecules in the air.  Fog or Mist is an Aerosol, a colloidal suspension of liquid (water) molecules in the air.  Dust is a colloidal suspension of solids (usually silica or sand) in the air.  Milk is an Emulsion, a colloidal suspension of liquid (fats & oils) in another liquid (water).  Gold-Ruby Glass is a colloidal suspension of one solid (gold) in another solid (glass).  Blood is a colloidal suspension of blood cells in a liquid medium (plasma).

Colloids may be classified according to the original phases of their constituents:

1. Solid dispersed in a liquid is called a Sol. 2. Solid or semisolid colloidal system is a Gel. 3. Emulsion consists of one liquid dispersed in another. 4. Aerosol, such as smoke or mist, consists of a solid or liquid dispersed in a gas. 5. Some Alloys are solid-in-solid colloids.

How Atoms Combine

chemical bond- 

-the force that holds the atoms together in a compound
-contains a great deal of energy
-when these bonds are broken the energy in them is released
-this energy is often seen as heat, but can also be released as light or sound

Valence Electrons-

-electrons involved in chemical bonds
-outer shell electrons

Ionic Bond-

-bond between a positive ion and a negative ion
-caused by opposite electrical charges

Covalent Bond-

-bond in which electrons are shared

Chemical Formula-

Uses the symbol for each atom in a compound to show the simplest ratio of the different ions in a compound

Check out this site for info on combining atoms 
                                        Chemical Formulas     by Ron Kurtus (revised 27 November 2000)

  The formula for salt is NaCl. This formula indicates that a one-to-one ratio exists between sodium ions and chloride ions in a crystal of salt. Sodium chloride is an ionic compound, that is, it is composed of charged particles called ions. Note that in the formula for NaCl the positive ion is written first. This is true of most ionic compounds.

Elements also combine in another way. Neutral atoms combine to form neutral particles called molecules. Compounds formed from molecules are called molecular compounds. In Chapter 12, we will study distinct differences in properties between ionic and molecular substances.

The element chlorine is a gas composed of molecules that are diatomic. A diatomic molecule is made of two atoms. One chlorine molecule contains two chlorine atoms. Chlorine gas is represented by the formula Cl₂. Some other common elements also occur as diatomic molecules. H₂, N₂, O₂, and F₂. 

http://www.synthashield.net/vault/colloids.html