Question 2.WKC.3: Which of the following drawings represents a mixture, which ......
Which of the following drawings represents a mixture, which a pure compound, and which an element?
STRATEGY
Many people (professional chemists included) find chemistry easier to grasp when they can visualize the behavior of atoms, thereby turning symbols into pictures. The Key Concept Problems in this text are intended to help you do that, frequently representing atoms and molecules as collections of spheres. Don’t take the pictures too literally; focus instead on interpreting what they represent.
Drawing (a) represents a mixture of two diatomic elements, one composed of two red atoms and one composed of two blue atoms. Drawing (b) represents molecules of a pure diatomic element because all atoms are identical. Drawing (c) represents molecules of a pure compound composed of one red and one blue atom