Question

Which statement describes potassium-argon dating?

Potassium-40 decays into argon gas over time.

Argon breaks down into other elements and compounds.

Potassium-40 becomes stable when trapped in rocks.

Argon is unstable and will decay into potassium-40 over time.

Answer 1

A.

Step-by-step explanation:

did the test

Answer 2

Answer: Potassium-40 decays into argon gas over time.

Explanation: Potassium-argon dating is a dating method used to determine the age of sedimentary rocks by comparing the proportion of K-40 to Ar-40 in a sample of rock, and knowing the decay rate of K-40.

Potassium-40 undergoes decay following first order kinetics as given below:

`_(19)^(40)\textrm{K}\rightarrow _(18)^(40)\textrm{Ar}+_(0)^1e`