The modern chemical picture of the world

1. The subject of knowledge and the most important features of chemical science

1 Specificity of chemistry as a science

For humans, one of the most important natural sciences is chemistry - the science of composition, internal structure and the transformation of matter, as well as the mechanisms of these transformations.

"Chemistry is a science that studies the properties and transformations of substances, accompanied by a change in their composition and structure." She studies the nature and properties of various chemical bonds, energy chemical reactions, reactivity of substances, properties of catalysts, etc.

Chemistry has always been necessary for mankind in order to obtain materials from natural substances with the properties necessary for Everyday life and production. Obtaining such substances is a production task, and in order to realize it, one must be able to carry out qualitative transformations of a substance, that is, obtain others from some substances. To achieve this, chemistry must cope with theoretical problem the genesis (origin) of the properties of a substance.

Thus, the basis of chemistry is a two-pronged problem - the production of substances with desired properties (human production activity is aimed at achieving it) and the identification of methods for controlling the properties of a substance (the scientific research work of scientists is aimed at implementing this task). The same problem is at the same time the backbone of chemistry.

2 The most important features of modern chemistry

In chemistry, primarily in physical chemistry, numerous independent scientific disciplines(chemical thermodynamics, chemical kinetics, electrochemistry, thermochemistry, radiation chemistry, photochemistry, plasma chemistry, laser chemistry).

Chemistry is actively integrating with other sciences, which resulted in the emergence of biochemistry, molecular biology, cosmochemistry, geochemistry, biogeochemistry. The first study the chemical processes in living organisms, geochemistry - the laws governing the behavior of chemical elements in earth crust.

Biogeochemistry is the science of the processes of movement, distribution, dispersion and concentration of chemical elements in the biosphere with the participation of organisms. The founder of biogeochemistry is V.I. Vernadsky.

Cosmochemistry studies the chemical composition of matter in the Universe, its abundance and distribution among individual cosmic bodies.

Fundamentally new research methods appear in chemistry (X-ray structural analysis, mass spectroscopy, radiospectroscopy, etc.)?

Chemistry has contributed to the intensive development of some areas of human activity. For example, chemistry has provided surgery with three main means, thanks to which modern operations have become painless and generally possible:

) introduction into practice of ether anesthesia, and then of other narcotic substances;

) the use of antiseptics to prevent infection;

) obtaining new, not naturally occurring alloplastic materials-polymers.

In chemistry, the inequality of individual chemical elements is very clearly manifested. The overwhelming majority of chemical compounds (96% of more than 8.5 thousand currently known) are organic compounds. They are based on 18 elements (the most common are only 6 of them).

This is due to the fact that, firstly, chemical bonds are strong (energy-intensive) and, secondly, they are also labile. Carbon, like no other element, meets all these requirements for energy intensity and bond lability. He combines chemical opposites in himself, realizing their unity.

However, we emphasize that the material basis of life is not reduced to any, even the most complex, chemical formations. It is not just an aggregate of a certain chemical composition, but at the same time a structure that has functions and carries out processes. Therefore, it is impossible to give life only a functional definition.

In recent years, chemistry is increasingly undertaking an assault on the adjacent levels of the structural organization of nature. For example, chemistry increasingly invades biology, trying to explain the foundations of life.

In the development of chemistry, there is not a change, but a strictly regular, sequential emergence of conceptual systems. In this case, the newly emerging system relies on the previous one and includes it in a transformed form. Thus, a system of chemistry appears - a single integrity of all chemical knowledge that appears and exists not separately from each other, but in close interconnection, complement each other and are combined into conceptual systems of knowledge that are among themselves in a hierarchical relationship.

2. Conceptual systems of chemistry

1 The concept of a chemical element

The concept of a chemical element appeared in chemistry as a result of man's desire to discover the primary element of nature. R. Boyle laid the foundation for the modern concept of a chemical element as a simple body, the limit of chemical decomposition of a substance, passing without change from the composition of one complex body to another. But for a whole century after that, chemists made mistakes in isolating chemical elements: having formulated the concept of a chemical element, scientists still did not know any of them.

Until a certain time, chemical knowledge was accumulated empirically, until there was a need for their classification and systematization, i.e. in theoretical generalization. DI Mendeleev was the founder of the systemic assimilation of chemical knowledge. Attempts to combine chemical elements into groups were made earlier, but no determining reasons for the changes in the properties of chemical substances were found. DI Mendeleev proceeded from the principle that any exact knowledge represents a system. This approach allowed him in 1869 to discover the periodic law and develop the Periodic Table of Chemical Elements. In his system, atomic weights are the main characteristic of the elements. D. I. Mendeleev's periodic law is formulated as follows:

"The properties of simple bodies, as well as the shapes and properties of compounds of elements, are periodically dependent on the value of the atomic weights of the elements."

This generalization gave new ideas about the elements, but due to the fact that the structure of the atom was not yet known, physical meaning his was unavailable. In modern terms, this periodic law looks like this:

"The properties of simple substances, as well as the forms and properties of compounds of elements, are periodically dependent on the magnitude of the charge of the atomic nucleus (ordinal number)."

The simplest chemical element is hydrogen (1H), which consists of one proton (the nucleus of an atom with a positive charge) and one electron with a negative charge.

The balance of relationships in a hydrogen atom, between a proton and an electron, can be described by the identity

Considering the mass ratio

then we get the first idea of ​​the balance of the relationship between protons and electrons in chemical elements.

2 Magic matrix of the periodic table of chemical elements

The following structure is given Periodic table D.I. Mendeleev. The information given below is provided only for acquaintance and subsequent realization that modern ideas about the secrets of the Periodic Table of chemical elements are still far from the Truth.

This figure gives a clear idea of ​​the strictly evolutionary formation of the Periodic Table, in full accordance with the laws of conservation of symmetry. All shells, subshells are here strictly interconnected and interdependent. Each chemical element occupies a strictly defined evolutionary niche in this multidimensional and multilevel "cube".

In the monographs "Fundamentals of Myology", "Myology", the properties of the magic matrix, reflecting the properties of subshells and shells of the Periodic Table of Chemical Elements, were considered.

This matrix directly shows

The quantitative composition of subshells is the same both horizontally and vertically.

Groupings of numbers reflecting the composition of the subshells of the Periodic system characterize the groupings of these subshells, which are different in structure. But this is how it should be, tk. the matrix is ​​a "imprint" of the spatial structure (monadic crystal) on a plane.

The main diagonal of a matrix is ​​the sum of all numbers horizontally and vertically.

This magical matrix of chemical elements deserves the most careful study.

Isn't there a double helix in which each number is a matrix of a strictly defined dimension?

From this matrix, using multidimensional scales, one can directly see the balance of relationships between subshells.

These matrix scales strictly follow the rules matrix multiplication column vectors per row vector. These scales reflect the balance of relationships between shells and subshells in the ascending segment of the evolution of chemical elements.

There is no place here for the philosophical categories of upward and downward spirals, for these categories here have not a philosophical, but a purely "chemical" meaning. Now we can write the Periodic Table in the form of matrix identities, reflecting the balance of relationships between its subshells and shells.

The figure below gives a more complete picture of the Periodic Table of Chemical Elements.

Let us recall that here each cell of the matrix is ​​a dual number, reflecting the meaning of the relationship between a person and society. This figure more deeply reflects the essence of the Periodic Table of chemical elements, confirming the validity of the statement: "Each elementary particle contains complete information about the entire universe."

The above matrix identities contain the most intimate secrets of not only chemical elements, but in general the most intimate secrets of the universe. These matrix identities are compiled in full accordance with the laws of conservation of symmetry.

This matrix carries information not only about the "manifested" Periodic Table of chemical elements, but also about its "unmanifest", wave "twin.

The periodic system of chemical elements once again confirms the validity of the principle of wave-particle duality, the principle of the unity of the "discontinuous" and "continuous".

And today science has already established that the Periodic Table of chemical elements (material) has a twin - the Periodic table of chemical elements (wave).

3 The modern picture of chemical knowledge

The most important feature of the main problem of chemistry is that it has only four ways of solving the problem. The properties of a substance depend on four factors:

) on the elemental and molecular composition of the substance;

) from the structure of the molecules of the substance;

) on the thermodynamic and kinetic conditions in which the substance is in the process of a chemical reaction;

) on the level of chemical organization of the substance.

Since these methods appeared sequentially, we can distinguish four successive stages of its development in the history of chemistry. At the same time, each of the named ways of solving the basic problem of chemistry has its own conceptual system of knowledge. These four conceptual systems of knowledge are in a hierarchy (subordination) relationship. In the system of chemistry, they are subsystems, just as chemistry itself is a subsystem of all natural science as a whole.

The modern picture of chemical knowledge is explained from the standpoint of four conceptual systems, which are schematically shown in Fig. I.

The figure shows the sequential emergence of new, concepts in chemical science, which were based on previous achievements, while retaining everything necessary for further development.

Even with the naked eye, the symmetry of the stages is visible in these stages.

On the left side of the identity, the relation reflects the structural aspect of the evolution of chemistry, the right side of the identity, on the contrary, reflects the already functional (processes) aspect of the evolution of chemistry.

3.1 The first level of chemical knowledge. The doctrine of the composition of matter

The study of the composition of substances is the first level of chemical knowledge. Until the 20s and 30s. XIX century. all chemistry did not go beyond this approach. But gradually the framework of the composition (properties) - chemistry became cramped, and in the second half of the 19th century. the dominant role in chemistry gradually acquired the concept of "structure", oriented, which is reflected directly in the concept itself, to the structure of the reagent molecule.

The first effective way to solve the problem of the origin of the properties of a substance appeared in the 17th century. in the works of the English scientist R. Boyle. His research showed that the qualities and properties of bodies are not absolute and depend on what chemical elements these bodies are composed of. For Boyle, the smallest particles of matter turned out to be the smallest particles (atoms) that were intangible by the senses, which could bind to each other, forming larger compounds - clusters (in Boyle's terminology). The properties of natural bodies also depended on the volume and shape of the clusters, on whether they were in motion or at rest. Today we use the term “molecule” instead of the term “cluster”.

In the period from the middle of the XVII century. until the first half of the 19th century. the theory of the composition of matter represented the entire chemistry of that time. It still exists today, representing the first conceptual system of chemistry. At this level of chemical knowledge, Scientists have solved and are solving three major problems: a chemical element, a chemical compound and the problem of creating new materials with newly discovered chemical elements.

All atoms that have the same nuclear charge are called a chemical element. A special type of chemical elements are isotopes, in which atomic nuclei differ in the number of neutrons (therefore they have different atomic masses), but contain the same number of protons and therefore occupy the same place in the periodic table of elements. The term "isotope" was introduced in 1910 by the English radiochemist F. Soddy. Distinguish between stable (stable) and unstable (radioactive) isotopes.

Since the discovery of isotopes, the greatest interest has been aroused by radioactive isotopes, which have become widely used in nuclear power engineering, instrument making, medicine, etc.

The first scientific definition of a chemical element, when none of them had yet been discovered, was formulated by the English chemist and physicist R. Boyle. The first was discovered the chemical element phosphorus in 1669, then cobalt, nickel and others. The discovery of oxygen by the French chemist A. L. Lavoisier and the establishment of its role in the formation of various chemical compounds made it possible to abandon the previous ideas about "fiery matter" (phlogiston).

In the Periodic Table D.I. Mendeleev, there were 62 elements, in the 1930s. it ended in uranium. In 1999, it was reported that the 114th element was discovered by physical synthesis of atomic nuclei.

The concept of chemical compounds. For a long time, chemists have empirically determined what belongs to chemical compounds and what to simple bodies or mixtures. V early XIX v. J. Proust formulated the law of constancy of composition, according to which any individual chemical compound has a strictly defined, unchanging composition and thus differs from mixtures.

The theoretical foundation of Proust's law was given by J. Dalton in the law of multiple ratios. According to this law, the composition of any substance could be represented as a simple formula, and the equivalent constituent parts of a molecule - atoms denoted by the corresponding symbols - could be replaced by other atoms.

A chemical compound is a broader concept than a "complex substance", which should consist of two or more different chemical elements. A chemical compound can also consist of one element. These are O2, graphite, diamond and other crystals without foreign inclusions in their lattice in the ideal case. "

Further development of chemistry and the study of everything more compounds led chemists to the idea that, along with substances with a specific composition, there are also compounds of variable composition - berthollides. As a result, the concept of the molecule as a whole was rethought. A molecule, as before, continued to be called the smallest particle of a substance capable of determining its properties and existing independently. But in the XX century. the essence of the chemical bond was understood, which began to be understood as a type of interaction between atoms and atomic-molecular particles, due to the joint use of their electrons.

On this conceptual basis, a harmonious atomic-molecular theory of that time was developed, which subsequently turned out to be unable to explain many experimental facts of the late 19th - early 20th centuries. The picture became clearer with the discovery of the complex structure of the atom, when the reasons for the connection of atoms interacting with each other became clear. In particular, chemical bonds indicate the interaction of atomic electric charges, the carriers of which are electrons and atomic nuclei.

There are covalent, polar, ionic and ionic-covalent chemical bonds, which differ in the nature of the physical interaction of particles with each other. Therefore, now a chemical compound is understood as a certain substance, consisting of one or more chemical elements, the atoms of which, due to interaction with each other, are combined into a particle with a stable structure: a molecule, complex, single crystal or other aggregate.

Chemical bonds between atoms are carried out by electrons located on the outer shell and bound to the nucleus the least strongly. They were called valence electrons. Depending on the nature of the interaction between these electrons, covalent, ionic and metallic chemical bonds are distinguished.

The covalent bond is carried out due to the formation of electron pairs, equally belonging to both atoms.

Ionic bond is an electrostatic attraction between ions, formed due to the complete displacement of an electrical pair to one of the atoms.

A metallic bond is a bond between positive ions in crystals of metal atoms, formed due to the attraction of electrons, but moving in a free form throughout the crystal.

Chemical bond is an interaction that binds individual atoms into more complex formations, into molecules, ions, crystals, i.e. in those structural levels organizations of matter, which are studied by chemical science. The chemical bond is explained by the interaction of electric fields formed between electrons and atomic nuclei in the process of chemical transformations. The strength of a chemical bond depends on the binding energy.

Based on the laws of thermodynamics, chemistry determines the possibility of a particular process, the conditions for its implementation, and internal energy. "Internal energy is the total energy supply of the system, which is made up of the energy of movement and interaction of molecules, the energy of movement and interaction of nuclei and electrons in atoms, in molecules, etc."

2.3.2 Second level of chemical knowledge

Numerous experiments to study the properties of chemical elements in the first half of the 19th century. led scientists to the conviction that the properties of substances and their qualitative diversity are due not only to the composition of the elements, but also to the structure of their molecules. By this time, the processing of huge masses of substances of plant and animal origin began to prevail in chemical production. Their qualitative diversity is amazingly great - hundreds of thousands of chemical compounds, the composition of which is extremely uniform, since they consist of several organogenic elements (carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, sulfur, nitrogen, phosphorus).

Science believes that only these six elements form the basis of living systems, which is why they are called organogens. The weight fraction of these elements in a living organism is 97.4%. In addition, 12 more elements are part of the biologically important components of living systems: sodium, potassium, calcium, magnesium, iron, zinc, silicon, aluminum, chlorine, copper, cobalt, boron.

A special role is assigned by nature to carbon. This element is able to organize connections with elements that oppose each other, and keep them within itself. Carbon atoms form almost all types of chemical bonds. On the basis of six organogens and about 20 other elements, nature has created about 8 million different chemical compounds discovered to date. 96% of them are organic compounds.

Explanation for the unusually wide variety organic compounds with such a poor elemental composition, it was found in the phenomena of isomerism and polymerization. This was the beginning of the second level of development of chemical knowledge, which is called structural chemistry.

A structure is a stable ordering of a qualitatively unchanging system (molecule). All structures that are studied in chemistry fall under this definition: quantum-mechanical, based on the concepts of valence and chemical affinity, etc.

It has become a higher level in relation to the doctrine of the composition of matter, including it in itself. At the same time, chemistry from a predominantly analytical science turned into a synthetic one. The main achievement of this stage in the development of chemistry was the establishment of a connection between the structure of molecules and the reactivity of substances.

The term "structural chemistry" is arbitrary. It implies a level of chemical knowledge at which, by combining the atoms of various chemical elements, one can create the structural formulas of any chemical compound. The emergence of structural chemistry meant that it became possible for a targeted qualitative transformation of substances, for creating a scheme for the synthesis of any chemical compounds, including those previously unknown.

The foundations of structural chemistry were laid by J. Dalton, who showed that any chemical substance is a collection of molecules consisting of a certain number of atoms of one, two or three chemical elements. Then I.-Ya. Berzelius put forward the idea that a molecule is not a simple pile of atoms, but a certain ordered structure of atoms linked by electrostatic forces.

The most important step in the development of structural chemistry was the emergence of the theory chemical structure organic compounds of the Russian chemist A.M. Butlerov, who believed that the formation of molecules from atoms occurs due to the closure of free units of affinity, but at the same time he indicated with what energy (more or less) this affinity binds substances together. In other words, Butlerov, for the first time in the history of chemistry, drew attention to the energy inequality of various chemical bonds. This theory made it possible to construct the structural formulas of any chemical compound, since it showed the mutual influence of atoms in the structure of a molecule, and through this explained the chemical activity of some substances and the passivity of others.

In the XX century. structural chemistry was further developed. In particular, the concept of structure was clarified, by which they began to understand the stable ordering of a qualitatively unchanging system. The concept of atomic structure was also introduced - a stable set of the nucleus and its surrounding electrons in electromagnetic interaction with each other - and molecular structure - a combination of a limited number of atoms that have a regular arrangement in space and are linked to each other by chemical bonds using valence electrons.

However, the further development of chemical science and production based on its achievements showed more accurately the possibilities and limits of structural chemistry.

For example, many reactions of organic synthesis based on structural chemistry gave very low yields of the desired product and large waste in the form of by-products. As a consequence, they could not be used on an industrial scale.

The structural chemistry of inorganic compounds is looking for ways to obtain crystals for the production of high-strength materials with desired properties, heat resistance, resistance to aggressive media and other qualities required by the current level of development of science and technology. The solution to these issues is faced with various obstacles. Growing, for example, some crystals requires the elimination of the conditions of gravity. Therefore, such crystals are grown in space, at orbital stations.

3.3 The third level of chemical knowledge. The doctrine of chemical processes

The study of chemical processes is a field of science in which the deepest integration of physics, chemistry and biology is realized. This doctrine is based on chemical thermodynamics and kinetics, therefore it belongs equally to physics and chemistry. One of the founders of this scientific direction was the Russian chemist N.N. Semenov, founder of chemical physics.

The doctrine of chemical processes is based on the idea that the ability of various chemical reagents to interact is determined, among other things, by the conditions for the occurrence of chemical reactions, which can affect the nature and results of these reactions.

The most important task of chemists is the ability to control chemical processes, achieving the desired results. In the most general form, methods for controlling chemical processes can be subdivided into thermodynamic (affect the shift in the chemical equilibrium of the reaction) and kinetic (affect the rate of the chemical reaction).

Thermodynamic and kinetic methods have been developed to control chemical processes.

French chemist A. Lee Chatelier at the end of the 19th century. formulated the principle of mobile equilibrium, providing chemists with methods for shifting equilibrium towards the formation of target products. These control methods are called thermodynamic. Each chemical reaction is, in principle, reversible, but in practice the equilibrium shifts in one direction or another. It depends both on the nature of the reagents and on the process conditions.

Thermodynamic methods predominantly affect the direction of chemical processes, rather than their speed.

The rate of chemical processes is controlled by chemical kinetics, in which the dependence of the course of chemical processes on the structure of the initial reagents, their concentration, the presence of catalysts and other additives in the reactor, methods of mixing the reagents, the material and design of the reactor, etc. is studied.

Chemical kinetics. Explains the qualitative and quantitative changes in chemical processes and identifies the reaction mechanism. The reactions take place, as a rule, in a series of successive stages, which constitute full reaction... The reaction rate depends on the conditions of the course and the nature of the substances that entered into it. These include concentration, temperature and the presence of catalysts. Describing a chemical reaction, scientists scrupulously note all the conditions for its course, since in other conditions and in other physical states of substances, the effect will be different.

The task of studying chemical reactions is very complex. Indeed, almost all chemical reactions are by no means a simple interaction of the initial reagents, but complex chains of successive stages, where the reagents interact not only with each other, but also with the walls of the reactor, which can both catalyze (accelerate) and inhibit (slow down) the process.

Catalysis is the acceleration of a chemical reaction in the presence of special substances - catalysts that interact with reagents, but are not consumed in the reaction and are not included in the final composition of the products. It was discovered in 1812 by the Russian chemist KGS Kirchhoff.

The essence of catalysis is as follows:

) the active molecule of the reagent is achieved due to their incomplete interaction with the catalyst substance and consists in relaxing the chemical bonds of the reagent;

) in the general case, any catalytic reaction can be represented as passing through an intermediate complex in which a redistribution of relaxed (incomplete valence) chemical bonds occurs.

Catalytic processes differ in their physical and chemical nature into the following types:

heterogeneous catalysis - a chemical reaction of the interaction of liquid or gaseous reagents on the surface of a solid catalyst;

homogeneous catalysis - a chemical reaction in a gas mixture or in a liquid where the catalyst and reagents are dissolved;

electrocatalysis - a reaction on the surface of an electrode in contact with a solution and under the action of an electric current;

photocatalysis - a reaction on the surface of a solid or in a liquid solution, stimulated by the energy of absorbed radiation.

The use of catalysts has changed the entire chemical industry. Catalysis is essential in the production of margarine, many food products, and crop protection products. Almost the entire industry of basic chemistry (60-80%) is based on catalytic processes. Chemists, not without reason, say that non-catalytic processes do not exist at all, since they all take place in reactors, the material of the walls of which serves as a kind of catalyst.

With the participation of catalysts, the rate of some reactions increases by a factor of 10 billion. There are catalysts that allow not only to control the composition of the final product, but also promote the formation of molecules of a certain shape, which greatly affects physical properties product (hardness, plasticity).

In modern conditions, one of the most important directions in the development of the theory of chemical processes is the creation of methods for controlling these processes. Therefore, today chemical science is engaged in the development of such problems as plasma chemistry, radiation chemistry, chemistry of high pressures and temperatures.

Plasma chemistry studies chemical processes in low-temperature plasma at 1000-10,000 ° C. Such processes are characterized by an excited state of particles, collisions of molecules with charged particles, and very high rates of chemical reactions. In plasma-chemical processes, the rate of redistribution of chemical bonds is very high, therefore they are very productive.

One of the youngest trends in the study of chemical processes is radiation chemistry, which originated in the second half of the 20th century. The subject of her development is the transformation of a wide variety of substances under the influence of ionizing radiation. Sources ionizing radiation are X-ray installations, charged particle accelerators, nuclear reactors, radioactive isotopes. As a result of radiation-chemical reactions, substances receive increased heat resistance and hardness.

Another area of ​​development of the theory of chemical processes is the chemistry of high and ultrahigh pressures. Chemical transformations of substances at pressures above 100 atm refer to high pressure chemistry, and at pressures above 1000 atm - to ultrahigh pressure chemistry.

At high pressure, the electronic shells of atoms approach and deform, which leads to an increase in the reactivity of substances. At a pressure of 102-103 atm, the difference between the liquid and gas phases disappears, and at 103-105 atm, the difference between the solid and liquid phases. At high pressure, the physical and chemical properties of the substance change dramatically. For example, at a pressure of 20,000 atm. the metal becomes elastic, like rubber.

Chemical processes are a complex phenomenon both in inanimate and in living nature. These processes are studied by chemistry, physics and biology. The fundamental task of chemical science is to learn how to control chemical processes. The fact is that some processes cannot be carried out, although in principle they are feasible, others are difficult to stop - combustion reactions, explosions, and some of them are difficult to control, since they spontaneously create a mass of by-products.

3.4 The fourth level of chemical knowledge. Evolutionary chemistry

Evolutionary chemistry began in the 1950s and 1960s. Evolutionary chemistry is based on the processes of biocatalysis, fermentology; it is focused mainly on the study of the molecular level of living things, that biocatalysis is the basis of living things, i.e. the presence of various natural substances in a chemical reaction, capable of controlling it, slowing down or accelerating its course. These catalysts in living systems are determined by nature itself, which is the ideal for many chemists.

The idea of ​​a conceptual understanding of the leading role of enzymes, bioregulators in the life process, proposed by the French naturalist Louis Pasteur in the 19th century, remains fundamental today. From this point of view, it is extremely fruitful to study enzymes and reveal the subtle mechanisms of their action.

Enzymes are protein molecules synthesized by living cells. Each cell contains hundreds of different enzymes. With their help, numerous chemical reactions are carried out, which, due to the catalytic action of enzymes, can proceed at a high speed at temperatures suitable for a given organism, i.e. in the range of about 5 to 40 degrees. We can say that enzymes are biological catalysts.

Evolutionary chemistry is based on the principle of using conditions that lead to self-improvement of catalysts for chemical reactions, i.e., to self-organization of chemical systems.

In evolutionary chemistry, an important place is given to the problem of "self-organization" of systems. The theory of self-organization "reflects the laws of such existence of dynamic systems, which is accompanied by their ascent to ever higher levels of complexity in systemic order, or material organization." In essence, we are talking about the use of the chemical experience of living nature. This is a kind of biologization of chemistry. A chemical reactor appears as a kind of living system, which is characterized by self-development and certain features of behavior. This is how evolutionary chemistry appeared as highest level development of chemical knowledge.

Evolutionary problems are understood as the problems of spontaneous synthesis of new chemical compounds (without human participation). These compounds are more complex and more highly organized products in comparison with the starting materials. Therefore, evolutionary chemistry is deservedly considered prebiology, the science of self-organization and self-development of chemical systems.

Until the last third of the XX century. nothing was known about evolutionary chemistry. Unlike biologists, who were forced to use Darwin's evolutionary theory to explain the origin of numerous species of plants and animals, chemists were not interested in the question of the origin of a substance, because the receipt of any new chemical compound has always been the work of human hands and mind.

The gradual development of science in the 19th century, which led to the disclosure of the structure of the atom and detailed knowledge of the structure and composition of the cell, opened up practical possibilities for chemists and biologists to work together on chemical problems teachings about the cell. To master the experience of living nature and implement the knowledge gained in industry, chemists have outlined a number of promising paths.

Firstly, research is underway in the field of metal complex catalysis, which is enriched by the methods used by living organisms in reactions involving enzymes (biocatalysts).

Second, scientists are trying to model biocatalysts. It has already been possible to create models of many enzymes that are extracted from a living cell and used in chemical reactions. But the problem is compounded by the fact that enzymes that are stable inside the cell are quickly destroyed outside of it.

Third, the chemistry of immobilized systems is developing, thanks to which biocatalysts have become stable, stable in chemical reactions, and the possibility of their repeated use has emerged.

Fourthly, chemists are trying to master and use all the experience of living nature. This will allow scientists to create complete analogs of living systems in which a wide variety of substances will be synthesized. Thus, fundamentally new chemical technologies will be created.

The study of self-organization processes in chemistry has led to the formation of two approaches to the analysis of prebiological systems: substrate and functional.

The result of the substrate approach is information on the selection of chemical elements and structures.

It is important for chemists to understand how the most complex biosystems were formed from a minimum of chemical elements (the basis of life of living organisms is 38 chemical elements) and chemical compounds (the majority is formed on the basis of 6-18 elements).

A functional approach in evolutionary chemistry. Within the framework of this approach, the role of catalysis is also studied and the laws governing the processes of self-organization of chemical systems are revealed.

The role of catalytic processes increased as the composition and structure of chemical systems became more complex. It was on this basis that some scientists began to associate chemical evolution with self-organization and self-development of catalytic systems.

Based on these observations, Professor of Moscow State University A.P. Rudenko put forward the theory of self-development of open catalytic systems. Very soon it was transformed into a general theory of chemical evolution and biogenesis. It resolves questions about the driving forces and mechanisms of the evolutionary process, that is, about the laws of chemical evolution, about the selection of elements and structures and their causation, about the height of chemical organization and the hierarchy of chemical systems as a consequence of evolution.

The essence of this theory is that the evolving matter is catalysts, not molecules. Under catalysis, the reaction of the chemical interaction of the catalyst with the reagents takes place, with the formation of intermediate complexes with the properties of the transition state. It is this complex that Rudenko called the elementary catalytic system. If in the course of the reaction there is a constant influx of new reagents from the outside, the withdrawal of finished products, and some additional conditions are met, the reaction can go on indefinitely, being at the same stationary level. Such renewable complexes are elementary open catalytic systems.

Self-development, self-organization and self-complication of catalytic systems occur due to a constant influx of transformable energy. And since the main source of energy is the basic reaction, the maximum evolutionary advantage is obtained by catalytic systems developing on the basis of exothermic reactions. Thus, the reaction is not only a source of energy, but also a tool for selecting the most progressive evolutionary changes in catalysts.

Thus, Rudenko formulated the basic law of chemical evolution, according to which those paths of evolutionary changes in catalysts that are associated with an increase in their absolute catalytic activity are realized with the highest speed and probability. In this case, the mechanisms of competition and natural selection are formed according to the parameter of absolute catalytic activity.

The theory of self-development of catalytic systems provides the following possibilities: to identify the stages of chemical evolution and, on this basis, to classify catalysts according to the level of their organization; use a fundamentally new method of studying catalysis; to give a specific characterization of the limits in chemical evolution and the transition from chemogenesis (chemical formation) to biogenesis associated with overcoming the second kinetic limit of self-development of catalytic systems.

Gaining theoretical and practical potential is the newest direction, expanding the understanding of the evolution of chemical systems, non-stationary kinetics.

The development of chemical knowledge allows us to hope for the solution of many problems that have faced humanity as a result of its science-intensive and energy-intensive practical activities.

Chemical science at its highest evolutionary level deepens the understanding of the world. The concepts of evolutionary chemistry, including chemical evolution on Earth, self-organization and self-improvement of chemical processes, and the transition from chemical evolution to biogenesis, are a convincing argument confirming the scientific understanding of the origin of life in the Universe.

Chemical evolution on Earth has created all the prerequisites for the emergence of living things from inanimate nature.

Life in all its diversity arose on Earth spontaneously from inanimate matter, it has been preserved and has been functioning for billions of years.

Life depends entirely on the preservation of the appropriate conditions for its functioning. And this largely depends on the person himself.

element covalent bioregulator polar

List of used literature

1. Brief Chemical Encyclopedia, Ch. ed. I. L. Knunyants, t. 1-5, M., 1961-67;

A short guide to chemistry, ed. OD Kurylenko, 4th ed. K., 1974;

General chemistry, L. Pauling, trans. from English., M., 1974;

Modern General Chemistry, J. Campbell, trans. from English, [t.] 1-3, M., 1975.

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Chemistry- the science of substances and their transformations, which are accompanied by a change in the composition and structure of matter. These processes are carried out on the border of the micro- and macrocosm.

As an independent science, chemistry began to develop from the middle of the 17th century. Scientific stage the development of chemistry was preceded by a period of alchemy. This cultural phenomenon is associated with attempts to obtain "perfect" metals - gold and silver - from "imperfect" metals using a hypothetical substance - the "philosopher's stone" or elixir. Despite the obvious impossibility of carrying out this transformation, alchemy stimulated the development of chemical technologies (metallurgy, glass making, the production of ceramics, paper, alcoholic beverages) and the discovery of ways to obtain new chemicals.

The scientific stage in the development of chemistry is usually divided into four periods, in each of which a conceptual knowledge system is formed:

a) the doctrine of the composition of matter(mid-17th - mid-18th centuries) - studies the dependence of the properties of substances on the chemical composition (composition of the molecule);

b) the doctrine of the structure of matter (structural chemistry)(mid-18th - mid-20th centuries) - studies the dependence of the properties of substances on the structure of the molecule;

c) the doctrine of chemical processes(mid-20th century) - the mechanisms of chemical reactions are studied, as well as the processes of their acceleration (catalysis);

d) evolutionary chemistry(last 25-30 years) - studies chemical processes in living nature, processes of self-organization of chemical systems.

3.1.1 The doctrine of the composition of matter

At the heart of classical chemistry is the concept of atomism, which was formulated in ancient philosophy by Leucypus, Democritus and Epicurus. On the basis of atomism in the middle of the 19th century, the main provisions of the atomic-molecular doctrine were formulated.

Substances are made up of molecules. A molecule is the smallest particle of a substance that has its chemical properties. Molecules differ in composition, size, physical and chemical properties.

Molecules are in constant motion; there is mutual attraction and repulsion between them. The speed of movement of molecules depends on the state of aggregation of substances.

In physical phenomena, the composition of the molecules remains unchanged; in chemical reactions, others are formed from some molecules.

Molecules are made up of atoms. The properties of the atoms of one element differ from the properties of the atoms of other elements. Atoms are characterized by specific sizes and masses. The mass of an atom, expressed in atomic mass units (amu), is called the relative atomic mass.

1 amu = 1,667 10 -27 kg.

Atomic-molecular doctrine made it possible to explain the basic concepts and laws of chemistry. The concept of "chemical element" was proposed by R. Boyle, the designation of chemical elements by symbols was proposed in 1814 by J. Berzelius. X imic element- a certain kind of atoms with the same nuclear charge. The nuclear charge is numerically equal to the ordinal number of the element in the periodic system. Currently, 118 chemical elements are known, of which 94 are found in nature, the remaining 24 are obtained artificially as a result of nuclear reactions.

Atom- the smallest particle of a chemical element that retains all its chemical properties. The chemical properties of an element are determined by the structure of its atom. Hence follows the definition of the atom, which corresponds to modern concepts: Atom is an electrically neutral particle consisting of a positively charged atomic nucleus and negatively charged electrons.

Isotopes- atoms of the same chemical element having different masses and, accordingly, different numbers of neutrons in the nucleus. Isotopes can be stable, i.e. their nuclei are not subject to spontaneous decay, and radioactive, which are capable of converting into atoms of other elements until a stable isotope is formed (Uranium-238 Lead-206).

Allotropy- the ability of elements to exist in the form of various simple substances, differing in physical and chemical properties. Allotropy can result from the formation of molecules with different numbers of atoms (for example, atomic oxygen O, molecular oxygen O 2 and ozone O 3) or the formation of different crystalline forms (for example, graphite and diamond). As a result of allotropy, about 400 simple substances are formed from 118 elements.

Molecule - it is the smallest particle of a given substance that has its chemical properties. The concept of a molecule was introduced by the Italian scientist A. Avogadro. In 1811, he proposed a molecular theory of the structure of matter.

The chemical properties of a molecule are determined by its composition and chemical structure. The sizes of molecules are determined by their mass and structure, and in large molecules they can reach 10 -5 cm. At present, more than 18 million types of molecules of various substances are known.

A chemical formula is a conditional record of the composition of a substance using chemical signs and indices. The chemical formula shows which atoms of which elements and in what ratio are connected to each other in a molecule.

Basic chimental laws.

Mass conservation law(M.V. Lomonosov, A.L. Lavoisier): the mass of the substances that entered into the reaction is equal to the mass of the substances formed as a result of the reaction. From the point of view of atomic-molecular teaching, as a result of chemical reactions, atoms do not disappear and do not arise, but their rearrangement (chemical transformation) occurs. Since the number of atoms before and after the reaction remains unchanged, their total mass should not change either. Based on the law of conservation of mass, it is possible to compose the equations of chemical reactions and make calculations on them. This law is the basis for quantitative chemical analysis.

At the beginning of the 20th century, the formulation of the law of conservation of mass was revised in connection with the emergence of the theory of relativity (see section 2.4.1), according to which the mass of a body depends on its speed and, therefore, characterizes not only the amount of matter, but also its motion. Energy received by the body E is associated with an increase in its mass m by the ratio E = m c 2, where c is the speed of light. This ratio is not used in chemical reactions, because 1 kJ of energy corresponds to a change in mass of approximately 10-11 g and m practically cannot be measured. However, in nuclear reactions where the energy change E is millions of times more than in chemical reactions, m should be considered.

The law of constancy of the composition of matter:

According to the law of constancy of composition, any chemically pure substance has a constant qualitative and quantitative composition, regardless of the method of its production. The qualitative and quantitative composition of a substance is shown by its chemical formula. For example, no matter how the substance water (H 2 O) is obtained, it has a constant composition: two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom.

From the law of constancy of composition, it follows that during the formation of a complex substance, the elements combine with each other in certain mass ratios.

It has now been established that this law is always valid for compounds with a molecular structure. The composition of compounds with a non-molecular structure (with an atomic, ionic and metallic crystal lattice) is not constant and depends on the preparation conditions.

Multiple Relations Law (J. Dalton)- if two elements form several chemical compounds with each other, then the masses of the elements are related to each other as small whole numbers.

For example: in nitrogen oxides N 2 O, N 2 O 3, NO 2 (N 2 O 4), N 2 O 5, the number of oxygen atoms per two nitrogen atoms are related to each other as 1: 3: 4: 5.

The Law of Volumetric Relations (Gay-Lussac) - the volumes of gases entering into chemical reactions, and the volumes of gases formed as a result of the reaction, are related to each other as small integers. Consequently, the stoichiometric coefficients in the equations of chemical reactions for molecules of gaseous substances show in what volumetric ratios gaseous substances react or are obtained. For instance:

2CO + O 2
2CO 2

When two volumes of carbon monoxide (II) are oxidized with one volume of oxygen, 2 volumes of carbon dioxide are formed, i.e. the volume of the initial reaction mixture is reduced by 1 volume.

Avogadro's law- equal volumes of any gases taken at the same temperature and pressure contain the same number of molecules. According to this law:

the same number of molecules of different gases under the same conditions occupies the same volumes;

1 mol of any ideal gas under normal conditions (0 ° C = 273 ° K, 1 atm = 101.3 kPa) occupies the same volume of 22.4 liters.

French chemist A.L. Lavoisier was the first to try to systematize chemical elements in accordance with their mass. The English chemist J. Dalton introduced the concept of atomic mass and was the creator of the theory of atomic structure. In 1804, he proposed a table of the relative atomic masses of hydrogen, nitrogen, carbon, sulfur and phosphorus, taking the atomic mass of hydrogen as a unit. At present, atomic mass is measured relative to 1/12 of the mass of an atom of a carbon isotope.

The work on studying the properties of atoms was continued by D.I. Mendeleev and in 1869 formulated the periodic law and developed the Periodic Table of Chemical Elements. The periodic law was formulated as follows: "The properties of simple bodies, as well as the forms and properties of compounds of elements are periodically dependent on the value of the atomic weights of the elements." As a backbone factor D.I. Mendeleev used the mass of a chemical element. In the Periodic Table D.I. Mendeleev, there were 62 elements.

Quantum mechanics clarified that the properties of chemical elements and their compounds are determined by the charge of the atomic nucleus. The modern formulation of the periodic law of chemical elements: the properties of simple substances, as well as the forms and properties of compounds of elements, are periodically dependent on the magnitude of the charge of the atomic nucleus and are determined by periodically repeating electronic configurations of the same type of their atoms.

The reactivity of an atom of a chemical element is determined by the number of electrons on the outer shell of the atom.

Valence- the properties of the atoms of one element to form a certain number of bonds with the atoms of other elements. Chemical bonds between atoms are carried out by electrons located on the outer shell and bound to the nucleus the least strongly. They were named valence electrons. It is possible to determine the valence (the number of valence electrons) according to the table of D.I. Mendeleev, knowing the number of the group in which the chemical element is located.

Electronegativity- the property of an atom in a compound to attract valence electrons to itself. The more the atom pulls electrons towards itself, the greater its electronegativity. Oxidation state- the conditional charge that is formed on the atom, if we take into account that the electron, when a bond is formed, passes completely to a more electronegative atom. The maximum oxidation state of an element is determined by the group number in the periodic table.

The atoms in molecules are linked by chemical bonds, which are formed due to the redistribution of valence electrons between atoms. When a chemical bond is formed, atoms tend to acquire a stable (complete) outer electron shell. Chemical bond is a kind of fundamental electromagnetic interaction. The formation of a chemical bond occurs due to the attraction of positive and negative charges, which are formed on an atom when an electron is lost or displaced from a stationary orbit. Depending on the nature of the interaction of atoms, covalent, ionic, metallic and hydrogen chemical bonds are distinguished.

Covalent bond carried out due to the formation of common electron pairs between two atoms. It can be polar or non-polar. Ionic bond is an electrostatic attraction between ions, which are formed due to the complete displacement of an electron pair to one of the atoms. Metallic bond - it is the connection between positive metal ions through a common electron cloud ("electron gas").

In addition to intramolecular bonds, intermolecular bonds are also formed. Intermolecular interactions are interactions of molecules with each other that do not lead to rupture or formation of intramolecular chemical bonds. The state of aggregation of a substance, structural, thermodynamic, thermophysical and other properties of substances depend on intermolecular interactions. An example of an intermolecular bond is a hydrogen bond.

A hydrogen bond is an intermolecular bond formed by the attraction of a more electronegative atom (F, O, N) and a hydrogen atom with a partial positive charge. For example, a hydrogen bond is realized between molecules of water, alcohol, organic acids. It affects the boiling point of a substance.

A hydrogen bond can also form inside molecules. For example, intramolecular hydrogen bonds exist in molecules of nucleic acids, proteins, polypeptides, etc. and determine the structure of these macromolecules

Chemistry- the science of the transformation of substances, accompanied by a change in their composition and structure.

The phenomena in which others are formed from some substances are called chemical... Naturally, on the one hand, in these phenomena can be found cleanly physical changes, but, on the other hand, chemical phenomena are always present in all biological processes. Thus, it is obvious connection chemistry with physics and biology.

This connection, apparently, was one of the reasons why chemistry could not become an independent science for a long time. Although already Aristotle divided substances into simple and complex, pure and mixed and tried to explain the possibility of some transformations and the impossibility of others, chemical phenomena in general, he considered quality changes and therefore attributed to one of the genera movement. Chemistry Aristotle was part of him physics- knowledge about nature ().

Another reason for the lack of independence of ancient chemistry is associated with theoretical, the contemplation of the entire ancient Greek science as a whole. They looked for the unchanging in things and phenomena - idea. Theory chemical phenomena led to element idea() as a kind of beginning of nature or to idea of ​​the atom as an indivisible particle of matter. According to the atomistic concept, the peculiarities of the forms of atoms in their many combinations determine the variety of qualities of bodies in the macrocosm.

Empirical experience in ancient Greece to the area arts and crafts... It also included practical knowledge of chemical processes: smelting metals from ores, dyeing fabrics, leather dressing.

Probably, from these ancient crafts, known in Egypt and Babylon, arose the "secret" hermetic art of the Middle Ages - alchemy, which was most widespread in Europe in the 9th-16th centuries.

Originating in Egypt in the III-IV centuries, this area of ​​practical chemistry was associated with magic and astrology. Its goal was to develop ways and means of transforming less noble substances into more noble ones in order to achieve real perfection, both material and spiritual. During the search universal By means of such transformations, Arab and European alchemists received many new and valuable products, and also improved laboratory techniques.

1. The period of the birth of scientific chemistry(XVII - end of XVIII century; Paracelsus, Boyle, Cavendish, Stahl, Lavoisier, Lomonosov). It is characterized by the fact that chemistry stands out from natural science as an independent science. Its goals are determined by the development of industry in modern times. However, the theories of this period, as a rule, use either ancient or alchemical concepts of chemical phenomena. The period ended with the discovery of the law of conservation of mass in chemical reactions.

For instance, iatrochemistry Paracelsus (16th century) was devoted to the preparation of medicines and the treatment of diseases. Paracelsus explained the causes of diseases by a violation of chemical processes in the body. Like alchemists, he reduced the variety of substances to several elements - carriers of the basic properties of matter. Therefore, restoring them to their normal ratio with medication cures the disease.

Theory phlogiston Stahl (XVII-XVIII centuries) generalized many chemical oxidation reactions associated with combustion. Stahl assumed the existence in all substances of the element "phlogiston" - the beginning of flammability.

Then the combustion reaction looks like this: combustible body → residue + phlogiston; the reverse process is also possible: if the remainder is saturated with phlogiston, i.e. mixed, for example, with coal, then metal can be obtained again.

2. The period of discovery of the basic laws of chemistry(1800-1860; Dalton, Avogadro, Berzelius). The result of the period was the atomic-molecular theory:

a) all substances consist of molecules that are in continuous chaotic motion;

b) all molecules are made up of atoms;

3. Modern period (started in 1860; Butlerov, Mendeleev, Arrhenius, Kekule, Semenov). It is characterized by the separation of sections of chemistry as independent sciences, as well as the development of related disciplines, for example, biochemistry. During this period were proposed periodic system elements, theory of valence, aromatic compounds, electrochemical dissociation, stereochemistry, electronic theory of matter.

The modern chemical picture of the world looks like this:

1. Substances in a gaseous state are composed of molecules. In the solid and liquid state, only substances with a molecular crystal lattice(CO 2, H 2 O). Most solids have either an atomic or ionic structure and exist in the form of macroscopic bodies (NaCl, CaO, S).

2. Chemical element - a certain type of atoms with the same nuclear charge. The chemical properties of an element are determined by the structure of its atom.

3. Simple substances formed from atoms of one element (N 2, Fe). Complex substances or chemical compounds are formed by atoms of different elements (CuO, H 2 O).

4. Chemical phenomena or reactions are processes in which some substances are transformed into others in structure and properties without changing the composition of atomic nuclei.

5. The mass of the substances entering into the reaction is equal to the mass of the substances formed as a result of the reaction (the law of conservation of mass).

6. Any pure substance, regardless of the method of production, always has a constant qualitative and quantitative composition (the law of constancy of composition).

The main task chemistry- obtaining substances with predetermined properties and identifying ways to control the properties of a substance.

Lack of chemistry theoretical foundations, allowing to accurately predict and calculate the course of chemical reactions, did not allow to put it on a par with the sciences that substantiate existence itself.

It was the reduction of chemical processes to the totality of physical ones, as it were, directly indicated the uselessness of chemical views in the analysis of the fundamental principles of being. By the way, when chemists tried to defend the specifics of their science with arguments about the statistical nature chemical interactions Unlike most interactions in physics, due to dynamic laws, physicists immediately pointed to statistical physics, which supposedly more fully describes such processes.

The specificity of chemistry was lost, although the presence of a strict geometry of bonds of interacting particles in chemical processes introduced an information aspect specific to chemistry into statistical consideration.

Analysis of the essence of the informational-phase state of material systems sharply emphasizes the informational nature of chemical interactions. Water as a chemical medium, being the first example of the informational-phase state of material systems, combined two states: liquid and informational-phase precisely because of the closeness of chemical interactions to informational ones.

Vacuum as an electromagnetic environment of physical space, which has manifested the properties of an information-phase state, is most likely closer to the environment in which processes that resemble chemical ones take place. The long-noted terminological coincidence in the description of the corresponding processes of transformation of particles in chemistry and in the physics of elementary particles as reactions additionally emphasizes the role of chemical concepts in physics.

Supposed relationship between information-phase states aquatic environment and the electromagnetic environment of the physical vacuum testifies to the accompanying chemical processes changes in the physical vacuum, which, probably, was felt by D.I. Mendeleev in his experiments.

Consequently, in the question of the nature of the world ether, chemistry at some points is even decisive in relation to the physical view.

Therefore, it is probably not worth talking about the priority of physical or chemical concepts in the development of a scientific picture of the world.

The discovery of the informational-phase state of material systems substantially supplements and in many respects changes the existing ideas about the world order.

Philosophical and methodological analysis of the discovery of the informational-phase state of material systems, taking into account the latest natural science concepts in the field of physics, chemistry and biology, shows that the modern scientific picture of the world presents our being as an information-controlled material world, which allows, by its structure, its infinite cognition by any rational person an object that has reached the appropriate level of development, i.e. who realized his connection to a single information field of material systems.

The theory of self-organization plays an equally important role in the formation of a new scientific picture of the world. She is especially interested in the coordinated state of self-organization processes in complex systems of various nature.

For a long time, only living systems were considered capable of self-organization, and objects of inanimate nature, as it was believed, if they evolve, then only in the direction of chaos and disorder. It remained unclear how objects of living nature capable of self-organization could arise from such systems, and how living and inanimate matter interacts.

Modern concepts self-organization allow to resolve the contradiction between the theory biological evolution and thermodynamics. Now these theories do not exclude, but assume each other, if classical thermodynamics is considered as a kind of special case of a more general theory - the thermodynamics of nonequilibrium processes. For the first time, there is a scientifically substantiated opportunity to overcome the traditional gap between the concepts of living and inanimate nature. Life no longer looks like an island of resistance to the second law of thermodynamics.

In the light of these ideas and discoveries, V. Vernadsky's concept of the biosphere and noosphere has acquired new relevance. In it, life appears as an integral evolutionary process (physical, geochemical, biological), enclosed as a special component in cosmic evolution. Awareness of this integrity largely determines the strategy for the further development of mankind. The problems of coevolution of man and the biosphere are gradually becoming dominant not only in modern science and philosophy, but also in the strategy of practical human activity.

Since the second half of the twentieth century, special scientific pictures of the world have significantly reduced the level of their autonomy and turned into aspects and fragments of an integral general scientific picture of the world. They are combined into blocks of this picture that characterize the inanimate nature, the organic world and social life and implement (each in its own area) the ideas of universal evolutionism ...

At first glance, the situation is, as it were, repeating, characteristic of the early stages of the development of modern European science, when the mechanical picture of the world, functioning as a general scientific one, provided a synthesis of the achievements of science of the 17th - 18th centuries. But the similarity is only superficial. The modern scientific picture of the world is based not on the desire to unify all areas of knowledge, their reduction to the principles of one any science, but on the unity and diversity of different sciences. It is known that special pictures of the world, as well as independent scientific disciplines, did not always exist. They did not exist during the formation of natural science. Having arisen in the era of differentiation of science, they then gradually begin to lose independence, turning into aspects or fragments of the modern general scientific picture of the world.

REFERENCES

1. What is the scientific picture of the world? Moiseev V.I., 1999

2. Sociological aspects of studying the scientific picture of the world. A. V. Shkurko // Science and everyday life, Issue 8: Science and national culture, - Nizhny Novgorod, 2006

3. Picture of the world and its types. Pogosova K.O.

4. Astronomy and the modern picture of the world (FA Tsitsin Astronomical picture of the world: new aspects). Internet SOURCE 1982

Introduction

The transition of science to the post-nonclassical stage of development has created new prerequisites for the formation of a unified scientific picture of the world. For a long time, the idea of ​​this unity existed as an ideal. But in the last third of the 20th century, real possibilities arose to unite ideas about the three main spheres of being - inanimate nature, organic world and social life - into a holistic scientific picture based on basic principles that have a general scientific status.

These principles, while not denying the specifics of each specific branch of knowledge, at the same time act as an invariant in the variety of different disciplinary ontologies. The formation of such principles was associated with a rethinking of the foundations of many scientific disciplines. At the same time, they act as one of the aspects of the great cultural transformation taking place in our era.

If we briefly characterize the current trends in the synthesis of scientific knowledge, they are expressed in the desire to build a general scientific picture of the world on the basis of the principles of universal evolutionism, combining the ideas of systemic and evolutionary approaches into a single whole. My work is devoted to this topic.

It is customary to subdivide chemistry into 5 sections: inorganic, organic, physical, analytical and chemistry of macromolecular compounds.

The most important features of modern chemistry include:

1. Differentiation of the main sections of chemistry into separate, largely independent scientific disciplines, which is based on the difference in objects and research methods.

2. Integration of chemistry with other sciences. As a result of this process arose: biochemistry, bioorganic chemistry and molecular biology, which study the chemical processes in living organisms. At the junction of disciplines, both geochemistry and cosmochemistry arose.

3. The emergence of new physicochemical and physical research methods.

4. Formation of the theoretical foundation of chemistry based on the quantum-wave concept.

With the development of chemistry to its modern level, it has developed four sets of approaches to solving the main problem (study of the origin of the properties of substances and the development on this basis of methods for obtaining substances with predetermined properties).

1. The doctrine of composition, in which the properties of substances were associated exclusively with their composition. At this level, the content of chemistry was exhausted by its traditional definition - as the science of chemical elements and their compounds.

2. Structural chemistry. This concept unites theoretical concepts in chemistry, establishing a connection between the properties of substances not only with the composition, but also with the structure of molecules. Within the framework of this approach, the concept of "reactivity" arose, which includes the concept of the chemical activity of individual fragments of a molecule - its individual atoms or entire atomic groups. The structural concept made it possible to transform chemistry from a predominantly analytical to a synthetic science. This approach ultimately made it possible to create industrial technologies for the synthesis of many organic substances.

3. The doctrine of chemical processes. Within the framework of this concept, using the methods of physical kinetics and thermodynamics, factors have been identified that affect the direction and rate of chemical transformations and their results. Chemistry revealed the mechanisms for controlling reactions and proposed ways to change the properties of the substances obtained.

4. Evolutionary chemistry. The last stage of the conceptual development of chemistry is associated with the use in it of some of the principles implemented in the chemistry of living nature. Within the framework of evolutionary chemistry, a search is carried out for such conditions under which self-improvement of reaction catalysts takes place in the process of chemical transformations. Essentially, we are talking about the self-organization of chemical processes taking place in the cells of living organisms.