Laws Of Chemical Combination

Question

Carbon reacts with oxygen to form two different oxides: CO and CO₂. In CO, the ratio of carbon to oxygen by mass is 3:4, and in CO₂ it is 3:8. This observation is best explained by which law?

RankGuru · Accepted Answer

1. **Identify the Context**: Carbon forms two compounds with oxygen — CO and CO₂. The same two elements combine in different mass ratios in different compounds.
2. **Apply the Law of Multiple Proportions** (Dalton, 1803): When two elements form more than one compound, the masses of one element that combine with a fixed mass of the other are in a ratio of small whole numbers.
3. **Verify the Ratio**: Keeping the mass of carbon fixed at 3 g:
   - In CO, oxygen = 4 g.
   - In CO₂, oxygen = 8 g.
   - Ratio of oxygen masses = $\frac{8}{4} = \frac{2}{1}$, a simple whole-number ratio.
4. **Why Not the Others?**
   - Law of Conservation of Mass deals with total mass in a reaction, not composition ratios.
   - Law of Definite Proportions states a *single* compound always has fixed composition — it does not compare two compounds.
   - Avogadro's Law relates gas volumes, not mass ratios.
5. **Conclusion**: The observation directly illustrates the **Law of Multiple Proportions**.

Laws Of Chemical Combination

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