Answer to Question #250629 in General Chemistry for Yen

Question

1. Why can gases be compressed?
2. Why does the volume Of a gas decrease as the pressure is increase at constant temperature ?

Answer 1

Gases are compressible because most of the volume of a gas is composed of the large amounts of empty space between the gas particles. When a gas is compressed, as when the scuba tank is being filled, the gas particles are forced closer together. Compressed gases are used in many situations.

This shows that the pressure of a gas is inversely proportional to its volume. It means that for a gas at a constant temperature, pressure × volume is also constant. So increasing pressure from pressure 1 to pressure 2 means that volume 1 will change to volume 2, providing the temperature remains constant.