Skip to main content

← SACE

SA · SACE Board2026

SACE Stage 2 Chemistry: complete 2026 guide to the four topics

A complete 2026 guide to SACE Stage 2 Chemistry: the four topics, how school assessment and the external examination combine, and links to every dot-point study note.

Browse guides →Syllabus dot points (29)ATAR calculator

SACE Stage 2 Chemistry is the Year 12 course for South Australian students. It is built around four topics and assessed with a 70 percent school-based component and a 30 percent external examination. This page is the index: below you will find the structure of the course, how the assessment works, and links to every dot-point study note we have written.

How SACE Stage 2 Chemistry is assessed in 2026

Your final result combines school assessment (70 percent) and an external examination (30 percent).

School assessment (70 percent).

  • Investigations Folio (30 percent). Practical investigations and a science-as-a-human-endeavour investigation. Assesses experimental design, data processing and analysis, evaluation of reliability, and scientific communication.
  • Skills and Applications Tasks (40 percent). Tests and tasks that apply chemical concepts, write and balance equations, and carry out calculations under conditions set by your school.

External Examination (30 percent). A single end-of-year paper, externally set and marked, that can draw on all four topics. Because it is cumulative, content from Topic 1 remains examinable at the end of the year.

The four topics

Topic 1: Monitoring the Environment

How chemists detect and measure substances in air and water, and the analytical techniques used to do it.

Topic 2: Managing Chemical Processes

Equilibrium, reaction rates, energy changes, and how industrial processes are controlled.

Topic 3: Organic and Biological Chemistry

Naming and reactions of organic compounds, polymers, biomolecules, and how molecules are identified by spectroscopy.

Topic 4: Managing Resources

Fuels, redox and electrochemistry, batteries, metals, and the sustainable use of resources.

How to use this hub

If you are starting the year: read the Topic 1 titration and Topic 2 equilibrium notes first - calculations and equilibrium reasoning underpin much of the course and recur in the Skills and Applications Tasks.

If you are building your Investigations Folio: choose the dot point closest to your practical (titrations, calorimetry, equilibrium shifts or electrochemistry are common choices) and use it to ground your design and analysis.

If you are revising for the External Examination: work through all four topics, drilling the calculation-heavy notes (titrations, Kc, calorimetry, electrolysis) under timed conditions, since the exam is cumulative across the whole course.

For the official subject outline, performance standards and past examination papers, refer to the SACE Board of South Australia at sace.sa.edu.au.

The SACE system, explained

See all →

Common questions about Chemistry

How is SACE Stage 2 Chemistry structured in 2026?
SACE Stage 2 Chemistry is organised into four topics - Monitoring the Environment, Managing Chemical Processes, Organic and Biological Chemistry, and Managing Resources. Assessment is 70 percent school-based and 30 percent external. The school-based component is made up of the Investigations Folio (30 percent) and Skills and Applications Tasks (40 percent); the External Examination is worth 30 percent.
How is SACE Stage 2 Chemistry assessed?
Your result combines a 70 percent school-assessed component and a 30 percent external examination. School assessment consists of an Investigations Folio worth 30 percent (practical and science-as-a-human-endeavour investigations) and Skills and Applications Tasks worth 40 percent (tests and tasks applying concepts and calculations). The External Examination, worth 30 percent, is a single end-of-year paper covering all four topics.
What are the four topics in SACE Stage 2 Chemistry?
The four topics are Topic 1 Monitoring the Environment (pollutants, water quality, titrations and instrumental analysis), Topic 2 Managing Chemical Processes (equilibrium, rates, energy and industrial chemistry), Topic 3 Organic and Biological Chemistry (hydrocarbons, functional groups, reactions, polymers, biomolecules and spectroscopy), and Topic 4 Managing Resources (fuels, redox, electrochemistry, batteries, metals and sustainability).
What is the Investigations Folio in SACE Chemistry?
The Investigations Folio is a 30 percent school-assessed component made up of practical investigations and a science-as-a-human-endeavour investigation. It assesses your ability to design and conduct experiments, process and analyse data, evaluate procedures and reliability, and communicate scientific findings.
How much is the external exam worth in SACE Stage 2 Chemistry?
The External Examination is worth 30 percent of your final Stage 2 Chemistry result. It is a single externally-set and externally-marked paper, sat at the end of the year, that can draw on all four topics, so content from early in the year remains examinable months later.
What maths and calculations do I need for SACE Stage 2 Chemistry?
You need confident stoichiometry, including titration calculations (acid-base and redox), equilibrium constant Kc calculations, calorimetry using q = mcΔT, atom economy, electrode-potential and electrolysis calculations using Q = It and Faraday's constant. Accuracy with units, mole ratios and significant figures is rewarded across the Skills and Applications Tasks and the external examination.
What's the difference between ionic and covalent bonding?
Ionic: electrons are transferred between atoms (typically metal + non-metal); forms a lattice. Covalent: electrons are shared (non-metal + non-metal); forms discrete molecules or networks.
How do I calculate pH?
pH = -log₁₀[H⁺]. For strong acids/bases, [H⁺] equals the concentration. For weak acids, use Ka. For buffers, use Henderson-Hasselbalch.
What's Le Chatelier's principle?
When a system at equilibrium is disturbed (concentration, temperature, pressure change), the equilibrium shifts to partially counteract the disturbance.
How do I balance a redox equation?
Identify the half-reactions (oxidation and reduction), balance atoms (excluding O and H), balance O with H₂O and H with H⁺, balance charge with electrons, then combine so electrons cancel.
What's the difference between enthalpy and entropy?
Enthalpy (ΔH) is the heat change of a reaction. Entropy (ΔS) is the change in disorder. Gibbs free energy (ΔG = ΔH - TΔS) tells you if the reaction is spontaneous.