A student combines two liquids in a beaker. She observes that the mass of the combined liquid is less than the mass of the two separate liquids. The student claims that this observation shows that matter is not conserved in chemical reactions. Which statement explains why the student’s claim is incorrect?(1 point)
Responses
The reaction produced a gas that escaped the beaker.
The reaction produced a gas that escaped the beaker.
The reaction did not change the physical properties of the liquids.
The reaction did not change the physical properties of the liquids.
The product contained fewer atoms than the reactants.
The product contained fewer atoms than the reactants.
The combined liquid was warmer than the two separate liquids.
The product contained fewer atoms than the reactants.
The product contained fewer atoms than the reactants.
The correct statement that explains why the student's claim is incorrect is:
The reaction produced a gas that escaped the beaker.
When two liquids are combined in a reaction, it is important to consider the mass of all the substances involved, including any gases that may be produced. In this case, the observation that the mass of the combined liquid is less than the mass of the two separate liquids suggests that a gas was produced during the reaction, and that gas escaped from the beaker.
This does not imply that matter is not conserved in chemical reactions. Matter is conserved in chemical reactions, meaning that the total mass of all the reactants is equal to the total mass of all the products. In this scenario, the mass of the gases that have escaped from the reaction is not accounted for, leading to the seemingly lower mass of the combined liquid. It is important to measure all the substances involved, including any gases, to accurately understand the conservation of matter in a chemical reaction.