GCSE

SCIENCE A / CHEMISTRY
CH1HP
Report on the Examination
4405/4402
June 2013
Version: 1.0

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REPORT ON THE EXAMINATION GCSE SCIENCE A / CHEMISTRY CH1HP - JUNE 2013

General comments
The paper was out of sixty marks and the students had one hour in which to complete it. There
were seven questions on this paper. Questions two and three, including the QWC question, were
common to Foundation and Higher Tiers. They were targeted at grades D and C, along with
question one. The final four questions were targeted at grades B to A*.
This paper continues to reflect the requirements of the new GCSE subject criteria and the new
specification. Half of the marks on the paper are for application of skills, knowledge and
understanding in practical and other contexts and for analysing and evaluating evidence, making
reasoned judgments and drawing conclusions. Students should expect to be given unfamiliar
contexts and information that assess these objectives. Familiar contexts are those mentioned in
the specification and assess recall, selection and communication of students knowledge and
understanding.
The paper produced the usual range of answers, from students whose responses showed an
excellent understanding to students who would have found the Foundation paper a more positive
experience.
The mark scheme was designed to allow students to gain marks for showing knowledge,
understanding and application of chemistry. The extended response questions caused problems
for some students who could not organise their answers. However, students are generally better at
fully answering questions and therefore gained more than one mark on questions that were worth
more than one mark.
The majority of students appeared to have sufficient time to complete the paper. A few students
used up a lot of space by repeating the question, which really is not needed in an examination as it
does not gain them any credit. There were a large number of students whose scripts were difficult
to read, either due to poor handwriting or the use of pens other than black, or both.
Basic knowledge and understanding of how science works in familiar and in unfamiliar situations,
including in the laboratory, are tested throughout this paper. This means that it is essential that
students read and analyse the information provided, then read and understand the question before
writing their response. Students should then read through their answers, especially those that are
descriptions or explanations. Many students use it or they without any clear indication of what the
student is referring to.
Question 1 (Standard and High Demand)
(a) (i)

This was well answered. Several students adopted an excellent strategy of writing out
the structure as 2, 8, 3 and then drawing the diagram. Most students used dots or
crosses to represent the electrons. Some students changed their minds and over-wrote
their original answer; so at times it was difficult to tell whether an electron had been
crossed out or not. The most common errors were putting more than 2 electrons in the
first shell or fewer than 8 in the second shell.

(a) (ii)

The names of the two sub-atomic particles in the nucleus were well known. The most
common error was to include electron and, occasionally, nucleus.

(a) (iii)

Only a minority of students answered this correctly. Several students were confused
about the names and the charges on sub-atomic particles. Others incorrectly thought
that the overall electrical charge was related to the number of electrons in the outer
shell.

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REPORT ON THE EXAMINATION GCSE SCIENCE A / CHEMISTRY CH1HP - JUNE 2013

(b) (i)

This question was well done with only a few students giving an incorrect answer or not
providing an answer. A few put symbols or formulae on the dotted lines, suggesting that
they do not know what is meant by balancing a chemical equation.

(b) (ii)

A majority of students did not understand why aluminium reacts with iron oxide. A
substantial number of students did not appreciate that the reactivity series relates to the
reactivity of metals not compounds. Others attempted unsuccessfully to answer in terms
of electrons.

Question 2 (Standard Demand)

(a)

A small number of students gained two marks. A large proportion of students

appreciated that copper/copper ores were running out. New technologies were often
mentioned. Many students misread the question and referred to the process using less
energy. Others thought that it was cheaper to extract because the ores contained less
copper.

(b) (i)

This question was generally answered quite poorly. The reasons as to why it is difficult
to dispose of the waste rock often contained vague environmental comments relating to
pollution, the environment and biodegradability.

(b) (ii)

Many students failed to appreciate that the ore contained sulfur, and as such would
cause sulfur dioxide to be released into the atmosphere. The most common correct
answer linked the burning of fuels to the production of carbon dioxide and its subsequent
effect on global warming. Carbon dioxide was often seen as a gas that destroys the
ozone layer. However, those who managed to identify sulfur dioxide usually gained the
acid rain mark as well.

(b) (iii)

The most common correct answer related to a lot of energy being used to extract
copper. This was linked to heating or the large amount of electricity needed for
electrolysis. Large numbers of students appreciated that the process had many stages.

(b) (iv)

This question was reasonably well answered, with a large proportion of students
mentioning that during electrolysis the positive copper ions were attracted to the
negative electrode. However, many students confused both the charge and name of the
electrode. A large number of students did not attempt this question.

(b) (v)

A reasonable proportion of students gained the mark with a reference to plants, with
many students adding further details of the process or the name of plants used. A few
incorrectly suggested that phytomining uses magnetism, explosions or drilling. A large
number of students did not attempt this question.

Question 3 (Standard Demand)

(a) (i)

The question was not well answered considering that the type of reaction that releases
energy from a fuel is such basic knowledge. Exothermic was rarely seen, with the most
common correct answer being combustion, followed by burning or oxidation. Thermal
decomposition, cracking, electrolysis and fractional distillation were the most common
incorrect responses.

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REPORT ON THE EXAMINATION GCSE SCIENCE A / CHEMISTRY CH1HP - JUNE 2013

(a) (ii)

This question was not well answered. A large percentage of students realised that the
gas was carbon monoxide. About half of these students displayed a good understanding
of incomplete combustion.

(b)

This was the six mark QWC question. Students appear to be appreciating the demands
of this type of question better and, therefore, many gained a high mark. The fact that it
was based on a commonly studied aspect of chemistry possibly helped. Most students
could identify that the oil was heated and that it evaporated. There was a good
understanding of separation due to the difference in boiling points. Some students went
into great detail, but often failed to identify the key point that the boiling points relate to
the condensation of fractions. A large proportion of students tailored the response to
petrol rather than a general description of fractional distillation. This was a very
acceptable approach. Many descriptions were incorrectly based on cracking
hydrocarbons rather than the fractional distillation of crude oil.

Question 4 (Standard and High Demand)

(a)

Most students recognised an advantage of recycling materials by using stock phrases

such as, conserves resources, less energy use or less landfill. The disadvantages were
more confused, with students not appreciating the context of the question, which was
looking for the difficulty and expense of separating all the different items in an object
such as a pen. Many students still confuse reuse with recycle. Too many students did
not clearly state advantage and disadvantage in their response and as such it was
difficult sometimes to judge the correctness of their response. It was clear that some
students were not relating their comments to the pen, but to recycling in general.

(b)

Most students gained at least one mark, with many getting both marks. Stronger or
harder together with the idea of resistance to corrosion were the most common correct
reasons for why alloys are used in the ballpoint pen. Less corrosive was a common
incorrect response.

(c) (i)

A simple description of the conditions for reaction 1 (cracking) was a catalyst at high
temperature, which was worth two marks. A large proportion of students gained at
least one mark, usually for catalyst. However, there was still considerable confusion
regarding the process being used, with a very large number of students quoting a nickel
catalyst at 60C. Answers such as heat or hot were not sufficient for the high
temperature mark, but there was an acceptable range of actual temperatures.

(c) (ii)

This question was poorly answered. Most students could not describe how poly(ethene)
is produce from the ethene. The lack of understanding of the process was shown by the
large number of blank answers. Also a large number of students provided an
explanation of cracking and, as such, gained no credit.

(d)

This was also poorly answered with only a small percentage of students gaining two
marks. The most common mark gained was for the brackets and n in the displayed
structure of poly(styrene). Many students nearly gained two marks, but included a
double bond between the two carbon atoms or redrew the poly(ethene) structure. A
large number of students did not attempt this question.

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REPORT ON THE EXAMINATION GCSE SCIENCE A / CHEMISTRY CH1HP - JUNE 2013

Question 5 (Standard and High Demand)

(a) (i)

Although many completions of the chemical equations were correct, the question
produced a wide variety of symbols and formulae.

(a) (ii)

The question was very poorly answered, with many students failing to grasp the idea of
locked up carbon dioxide. Most seemed to miss the main point and instead focused on
how the carbon dioxide would be released after being locked up, that is, referring to
carbon dioxide which would be released into the atmosphere when fuels are burned.

(b) (i)

The better students realised that the percentage decrease of carbon dioxide had slowed
down in the last 4500 million years. Many students only gained the compensation mark
for stating that levels of carbon dioxide had decreased. It was perhaps surprising that so
many students read the graph as increasing levels of carbon dioxide, with some thinking
that graph 1 related to an increase of carbon dioxide in the future.

(b) (ii)

A reasonable proportion of students described how the percentage of carbon dioxide

has changed in the last 4500 million years, usually with reference to photosynthesis and
carbon dioxide dissolving in oceans. However, many students still seem to think that
respiration is the same as photosynthesis. Many students incorrectly related the
percentage change of carbon dioxide to the present day with both increasing levels of
carbon dioxide due to more transport and decreasing levels due to a lack of fossil fuels.

(c)

The correct explanation for the change in carbon dioxide levels in the last 250 years
mostly related to the argument that increasing levels would increase global warming.
Another correct argument used was that it is not a concern at the moment because the
level of carbon dioxide is still relatively low.

Question 6 (Standard and High Demand)

(a)

A large proportion of students gained two marks for knowing the three main layers and
their order in the Earth. The relative thickness mark point was given less often. The
inner and outer cores were mentioned regularly, as was the atmosphere. A small
number of students correctly compared the structure of an egg (shell, white and yoke) to
that of the Earth to illustrate the relative thickness. Better students went into great detail
giving the relative thicknesses of the layers in kilometres. Very few students used
diagrams to answer the question.

(b)

A large proportion of students appreciated that the continents were once joined, with
many quoted the name Pangaea. Although some appreciated that the continents had
split, they did not necessarily go on to say that they had moved apart.

Question 7 (Standard and High Demand)

(a)

The question was very poorly answered with many students suggesting that it somehow
related to the difficulty of measuring the precise melting point. The idea that ethanol was
one type of molecule; the others were mixtures and therefore of variable composition
was rarely given.

(b) (i)

There were a lot of blank answers compared to other questions and the most common
mark gained was for the mention of yeast. The use of water to produce a sugar solution
was rarely seen. Many seemed to think fermentation was some kind of rotting process.

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REPORT ON THE EXAMINATION GCSE SCIENCE A / CHEMISTRY CH1HP - JUNE 2013

(b) (ii)

This question was not well answered by most students. There were many students who
had little idea of the meaning of carbon neutral. A lot thought that carbon neutral fuels
did not release any carbon dioxide when burned.

(c)

The question was very poorly answered considering that it has been used in previous
papers. Many incorrectly thought the nitrogen oxides formed due to nitrogen and
oxygen being present in the fuels. Not many realised that the reaction was between
atmospheric nitrogen and oxygen and occurred due to the very high temperatures in the
engine. A large number of students did not attempt this question.

(d)

On the whole this question was well answered. Many students used the table to
successfully compare the energy output of the different fuels. However, the most
popular marks gained were for the ideas of ethanol being carbon neutral and coming
from a renewable source. Conclusions were often weak, with students not evaluating the
evidence that they had often correctly quoted in answering the question. Vague
comments, such as, better for the environment were common.

Mark Ranges and Award of Grades

Grade boundaries and cumulative percentage grades are available on the Results Statistics
page of the AQA Website.
Converting Marks into UMS marks
Convert raw marks into Uniform Mark Scale (UMS) marks by using the link below.
UMS conversion calculator www.aqa.org.uk/umsconversion

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