Question

Carbon and oxygen combine in two different ways to form carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide.In carbon monoxide,12 gram carbon combines with 16gram of oxygen .In carbon dioxide ,12 gram carbon combines with 32gram of oxygen.Which law of combination is illustrated by the experiment? Explain.

Answer 1

Answer:

When two elements combine to form two or more chemical compounds, then the masses of one of the elements which combined with a fixed mass of the other, bear a simple ratio to one another. For eg, Carbon combines with oxygen to form two compounds namely carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide.

In carbon dioxide, 12 parts by mass of carbon combine with 32 parts by mass of oxygen while in carbon monoxide, 12 parts by mass of carbon combine with 16 parts by mass of oxygen. The masses of oxygen which combined with a fixed mass of carbon in carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide are 16 and 32. These masses of oxygen bear a simple ratio of 16:32 or 1:2 to each.