Physical Property Definition and Examples

Physical Property Definition and Examples A physical property is a characteristic of matter that may be observed and measured without changing the chemical identity of a sample. The measurement of a physical property may change the arrangement of matter in a sample, but not the structure of its molecules. In other words, a physical property may involve a physical change, but not a chemical change. If a chemical change or reaction occurs, the observed characteristics are chemical properties. Intensive and Extensive Physical Properties The two classes of physical properties are intensive and extensive properties. An intensive property does not depend on the amount of matter in a sample. It is a characteristic of the material regardless of how much matter is present. Examples of intensive properties include melting point and density. Extensive properties, on the other hand, do depend on sample size. Examples of extensive properties include shape, volume, and mass. Physical Property Examples Examples of physical properties include mass, density, color, boiling point, temperature, and volume.