Effect of Students' Mathematical Knowledge in Physical Chemistry and Related Misconception

Misconception refers to any kind of false notions that cause non-scientific beliefs, confused concepts, simple concepts and theories without scientific roots. Misconceptions cover a wide range of scientific concepts. Misconception exist not only in different disciplines, but also in interdisciplinary areas. Understanding the basic concepts in thermodynamics greatly helps students' ability to establish a connection between mathematical equations and macroscopic phenomena. The present article is a review article in which the issue of students' skill in applying mathematical equations in thermodynamic laws is discussed. Many students do not have serious problems in mathematics. They can interpret the first and second order partial derivatives well and they got good marks in math in the last semesters, but the major problem arises when these people cannot apply math in chemical physics. Perhaps because of this abstract nature, it is challenging for students to interpret mathematical expressions and relate them to information related to macroscopic systems.

Keywords:

Misconception , Mathematics , Physical Chemistry , Mathematics in Chemistry