State the law of constant proportion.
Explain it with two examples.
Answers
The law of constant proportions states that chemical compounds are made up of elements that are present in a fixed ratio by mass. This implies that any pure sample of a compound, no matter the source, will always consist of the same elements that are present in the same ratio by mass. For example, pure water will always contain hydrogen and oxygen in a fixed mass ratio (a gram of water consists of approximately 0.11 grams of hydrogen and 0.88 grams of oxygen, the ratio is 1:8).
The law of constant proportions is often referred to as Proust’s law or as the law of definite proportions. An illustration describing the mass ratio of elements in a few compounds is provided below. The ratio of the number of atoms of each element is provided below the mass ratio. For example, in a nitrogen dioxide (NO2) molecule, the ratio of the number of nitrogen and oxygen atoms is 1:2 but the mass ratio is 14:32 (or 7:16).
The law of constant proportions states that chemical compounds are made up of elements that are present in a fixed ratio by mass. This implies that any pure sample of a compound, no matter the source, will always consist of the same elements that are present in the same ratio by mass. For example, pure water will always contain hydrogen and oxygen in a fixed mass ratio (a gram of water consists of approximately 0.11 grams of hydrogen and 0.88 grams of oxygen, the ratio is 1:8).
The law of constant proportions is often referred to as Proust’s law or as the law of definite proportions. An illustration describing the mass ratio of elements in a few compounds is provided below. The ratio of the number of atoms of each element is provided below the mass ratio. For example, in a nitrogen dioxide (NO2) molecule, the ratio of the number of nitrogen and oxygen atoms is 1:2 but the mass ratio is 14:32 (or 7:16).