scholarly journals Definition of the mole (IUPAC Recommendation 2017)

2018 ◽  
Vol 90 (1) ◽  
pp. 175-180 ◽  
Author(s):  
Roberto Marquardt ◽  
Juris Meija ◽  
Zoltán Mester ◽  
Marcy Towns ◽  
Ron Weir ◽  
...  

AbstractIn 2011 the General Conference on Weights and Measures (CGPM) noted the intention of the International Committee for Weights and Measures (CIPM) to revise the entire International System of Units (SI) by linking all seven base units to seven fundamental physical constants. Of particular interest to chemists, new definitions for the kilogram and the mole have been proposed. A recent IUPAC Technical Report discussed these new definitions in relation to immediate consequences for the chemical community. This IUPAC Recommendation on the preferred definition of the mole follows from this Technical Report. It supports a definition of the mole based on a specified number of elementary entities, in contrast to the present 1971 definition.

Author(s):  
Ian M. Mills ◽  
Peter J. Mohr ◽  
Terry J. Quinn ◽  
Barry N. Taylor ◽  
Edwin R. Williams

We review the proposal of the International Committee for Weights and Measures (Comité International des Poids et Mesures, CIPM), currently being considered by the General Conference on Weights and Measures (Conférences Générales des Poids et Mesures, CGPM), to revise the International System of Units (Le Système International d'Unitès, SI). The proposal includes new definitions for four of the seven base units of the SI, and a new form of words to present the definitions of all the units. The objective of the proposed changes is to adopt definitions referenced to constants of nature, taken in the widest sense, so that the definitions may be based on what are believed to be true invariants. In particular, whereas in the current SI the kilogram, ampere, kelvin and mole are linked to exact numerical values of the mass of the international prototype of the kilogram, the magnetic constant (permeability of vacuum), the triple-point temperature of water and the molar mass of carbon-12, respectively, in the new SI these units are linked to exact numerical values of the Planck constant, the elementary charge, the Boltzmann constant and the Avogadro constant, respectively. The new wording used expresses the definitions in a simple and unambiguous manner without the need for the distinction between base and derived units. The importance of relations among the fundamental constants to the definitions, and the importance of establishing a mise en pratique for the realization of each definition, are also discussed.


2020 ◽  
pp. 26-32
Author(s):  
M. I. Kalinin ◽  
L. K. Isaev ◽  
F. V. Bulygin

The situation that has developed in the International System of Units (SI) as a result of adopting the recommendation of the International Committee of Weights and Measures (CIPM) in 1980, which proposed to consider plane and solid angles as dimensionless derived quantities, is analyzed. It is shown that the basis for such a solution was a misunderstanding of the mathematical formula relating the arc length of a circle with its radius and corresponding central angle, as well as of the expansions of trigonometric functions in series. From the analysis presented in the article, it follows that a plane angle does not depend on any of the SI quantities and should be assigned to the base quantities, and its unit, the radian, should be added to the base SI units. A solid angle, in this case, turns out to be a derived quantity of a plane angle. Its unit, the steradian, is a coherent derived unit equal to the square radian.


Author(s):  
B. Fellmuth ◽  
J. Fischer ◽  
G. Machin ◽  
S. Picard ◽  
P. P. M. Steur ◽  
...  

In 2018, it is expected that there will be a major revision of the International System of Units (SI) which will result in all of the seven base units being defined by fixing the values of certain atomic or fundamental constants. As part of this revision, the kelvin, unit of thermodynamic temperature, will be redefined by assigning a value to the Boltzmann constant k . This explicit-constant definition will define the kelvin in terms of the SI derived unit of energy, the joule. It is sufficiently wide to encompass any form of thermometry. The planned redefinition has motivated the creation of an extended mise en pratique (‘practical realization’) of the definition of the kelvin ( MeP -K), which describes how the new definition can be put into practice. The MeP -K incorporates both of the defined International Temperature Scales (ITS-90 and PLTS-2000) in current use and approved primary-thermometry methods for determining thermodynamic temperature values. The MeP -K is a guide that provides or makes reference to the information needed to perform measurements of temperature in accord with the SI at the highest level. In this article, the background and the content of the extended second version of the MeP -K are presented.


Author(s):  
M. Stock

Since 1889, the international prototype of the kilogram has served as the definition of the unit of mass in the International System of Units (SI). It is the last material artefact to define a base unit of the SI, and it influences several other base units. This situation is no longer acceptable in a time of ever-increasing measurement precision. It is therefore planned to redefine the unit of mass by fixing the numerical value of the Planck constant. At the same time three other base units, the ampere, the kelvin and the mole, will be redefined. As a first step, the kilogram redefinition requires a highly accurate determination of the Planck constant in the present SI system, with a relative uncertainty of the order of 1 part in 10 8 . The most promising experiment for this purpose, and for the future realization of the kilogram, is the watt balance. It compares mechanical and electrical power and makes use of two macroscopic quantum effects, thus creating a relationship between a macroscopic mass and the Planck constant. In this paper, the operating principle of watt balance experiments is explained and the existing experiments are reviewed. An overview is given of all available experimental determinations of the Planck constant, and it is shown that further investigation is needed before the redefinition of the kilogram can take place. Independent of this requirement, a consensus has been reached on the form that future definitions of the SI base units will take.


2021 ◽  
Vol 34 (1) ◽  
pp. 12-16
Author(s):  
Teodor Ognean

At the 26th meeting of the General Conference on Weights and Measures (CGPM) held on 13‐16 November 2018 at Versailles, France, the new International System of Units (SI) was established. Following the CGPM’s decision, the new SI units were established based upon a set of seven defining constants. This set of constants is the most fundamental feature in the definition of the entire system of units. What is truly remarkable about the new SI is the fact that all measurement units, except the amount of substance mole and Avogadro’s number NA , are defined based on the unperturbed ground-state hyperfine transition frequency of the caesium 133 atom <mml:math display="inline"> <mml:msub> <mml:mrow> <mml:mi mathvariant="normal">Δ</mml:mi> <mml:mi>ν</mml:mi> </mml:mrow> <mml:mrow> <mml:mi mathvariant="normal">Cs</mml:mi> </mml:mrow> </mml:msub> </mml:math> equal to 9 192 631 770 Hz. This article, based on dimensional analysis, presents the possibility of connecting the Avogadro’s number NA and the mole, to the transition frequency <mml:math display="inline"> <mml:msub> <mml:mrow> <mml:mo>Δν</mml:mo> </mml:mrow> <mml:mrow> <mml:mtext>Cs</mml:mtext> </mml:mrow> </mml:msub> </mml:math> .


Author(s):  
Barry N. Taylor

A revised International System of Units (SI) is expected to be established by the 26th General Conference on Weights and Measures when it convenes in November 2018 and to be put into practice starting on 20 May 2019, World Metrology Day. In consequence, the article published in this journal in 2011, “The Current SI Seen from the Perspective of the Proposed New SI,” is updated in this paper, which provides an opportunity to again demonstrate the usefulness of the quantity calculus in dealing with quantities and units. The quantity calculus and the seven defining constants of the current and revised SI are reviewed, and expressions for the seven current and revised SI base units are given. Relationships between the magnitudes of revised and current SI units and expressions for the numerical values of current SI defining constants expressed in revised SI units are also obtained using the quantity calculus.


2019 ◽  
Vol 85 (2) ◽  
pp. 5-11
Author(s):  
L. A. Konopel’ko ◽  
R. L. Kadis ◽  
Yu. A. Kustikov

Redefinition of the basic units of the International System of Units (SI) — the kilogram, mole, ampere, and kelvin, — which are now expressed in terms of fundamental physical constants means a substantial revision of the system. In particular, the new definition of the mole fixing the value of the Avogadro constant sets a unit of the amount of substance, which is independent of the unit of mass. We consider some consequences of redefining (the mole and kilogram) and focus on the uncertainty of measuring the amount of substance and related quantities which are important for description of the mixture composition. The issue regarding the molar mass of the substance and associated uncertainty is considered in detail It is noted that calculation of the molar mass using relative atomic masses, involves the molar mass constant which is not equal exactly to 1 g/'mol in the new SI. This introduces an additional, though very small, uncertainty of less than 1 x 10-9in relative terms. The budget of uncertainty for the amount of substance determined through the mass measurements when the mass is measured with the highest accuracy is scrutinized. It is demonstrated that for substances of less than 99.98% purity, the uncertainty associated to the purity is comparable to that of relative atomic masses of the elements. For high-purity substances, the uncertainty in the relative atomic masses have the largest contribution to the budget. Anyhow, the uncertainty associated to the molar mass constant is three orders of magnitude less than the nearest contribution to the uncertainty attributed to weighing. In the case of derived quantities which are the ratio of two quantities of the same kind, the additional uncertainty does not arise at all. This is illustrated by the calculation of the mole fraction of a component in the gravimetrically prepared gas mixture.


Author(s):  
J. Fischer

At its 25th meeting, the General Conference on Weights and Measures (CGPM) approved Resolution 1 ‘On the future revision of the International System of Units, the SI’, which sets the path towards redefinition of four base units at the next CGPM in 2018. This constitutes a decisive advance towards the formal adoption of the new SI and its implementation. Kilogram, ampere, kelvin and mole will be defined in terms of fixed numerical values of the Planck constant, elementary charge, Boltzmann constant and Avogadro constant, respectively. The effect of the new definition of the kelvin referenced to the value of the Boltzmann constant k is that the kelvin is equal to the change of thermodynamic temperature T that results in a change of thermal energy kT by 1.380 65×10 −23  J. A value of the Boltzmann constant suitable for defining the kelvin is determined by fundamentally different primary thermometers such as acoustic gas thermometers, dielectric constant gas thermometers, noise thermometers and the Doppler broadening technique. Progress to date of the measurements and further perspectives are reported. Necessary conditions to be met before proceeding with changing the definition are given. The consequences of the new definition of the kelvin on temperature measurement are briefly outlined.


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