Final answer:
Sugar looks different from its constituent elements because it is a molecular compound with unique properties. The compound sucrose forms when carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen combine chemically. Sucrose has distinctive physical characteristics and tastes very different from the elements it comprises.
Step-by-step explanation:
The reason sugar looks different from the elements from which it is made is due to the properties of molecular compounds. When elements combine chemically, they form compounds with entirely different properties. For instance, white crystalline sugar (sucrose) is a compound of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen. The carbon element on its own is a black solid, while hydrogen and oxygen are colorless gases. When these elements combine, they form a compound with unique properties, such as being a white crystalline solid and having a sweet taste.
Table sugar, or sucrose, consists of individual sugar molecules held together by intermolecular attractive forces. Dissolving sugar in water doesn't break the covalent bonds between the atoms but separates the molecules by disrupting the attractive forces. This process of dissolution also hydrates the sugar molecules, allowing them to interact with water molecules due to the -OH groups present in the sugar, facilitating the formation of a solution.
Molecular compounds like sugar demonstrate differences even in their simplest forms. For example, glucose and sucrose have similar empirical formulas but different molar masses. While sucrose is about twice the size of glucose, only precise measurements like molecular weight determination can accurately differentiate them.