Analytical Chemistry is a branch of chemistry, which deals with the identification and quantification of chemical substances.
It plays a vital role in almost all chemical sub-disciplines and is often the subject of current public discussions, for example, in environmental analysis.
Types of Analytical Chemistry
There are three main types of analytical Chemistry analysis:
The Qualitative Analysis
The qualitative analysis explains, for what in the sense of “What kind of substance is that?”
If there is not just a chemical compound but also a mixture, the question is, “Which substances are in the sample?” The primary task of qualitative analysis is, therefore, the identification of substances.
The Quantitative Analysis
On the other hand, the quantitative analysis explains how much, i.e., what amount of a substance (the analyte) is present in a mixture (the sample).
By the way, what exactly “how much” should mean is not so trivial. The substance concentration is mostly represented here; for example, how many mg of caffeine are present per liter of coffee.
The Structural Analysis
The structural analysis asks about the molecular structure of a substance (the chemical structural formula or the crystal structure).
