OCR AS Level Chemistry B (Salters) Past Papers

OCR AS Level Chemistry B (Salters) (H033) presents chemical concepts through real-world storylines and industrial contexts — a curriculum approach developed by the Salters Institute that helps students understand why chemistry matters and how it underpins technology, medicine, environment, and industry. The qualification assesses the same core chemical principles as Chemistry A but in a context-rich, application-first framing. Paper 1: Foundations of Chemistry (H033/01, 1 hour 30 minutes, 70 marks) introduces chemical concepts through Salters storylines such as atmospheric chemistry, the chemistry of food, and pharmaceutical development. Content includes atomic structure, the mass spectrometer and isotopes, electron configurations and ionisation energies, chemical bonding (ionic, covalent, dative covalent, and metallic), molecular shapes (VSEPR), intermolecular forces, the mole concept and stoichiometry, and an introduction to organic chemistry (hydrocarbons, functional groups, and nomenclature). Questions are contextualised within real scenarios, requiring students to extract relevant chemical principles and apply them. Paper 2: Chemistry in Depth (H033/02, 1 hour 30 minutes, 70 marks) develops the content further, using contexts such as materials science, energy storage, and water treatment. Topics include acid-base chemistry (pH calculations, buffer solutions at introductory level), redox chemistry, the periodic table (groups and periods, Group 2 and halogen chemistry), organic reaction pathways, and thermochemistry (Hess's Law, bond enthalpy calculations, and an introduction to entropy and Gibbs free energy). Practical skills — including hazard assessment, uncertainty quantification, and evaluating experimental design — are integrated throughout both papers.