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Oxygen dissolves in blood much more easily than carbon dioxide.
a. true
b. false

User Homan
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1 Answer

1 vote

Final answer:

Oxygen does not dissolve as readily in blood as carbon dioxide; most oxygen is carried by hemoglobin, and carbon dioxide can be transported in several chemical forms.

Step-by-step explanation:

The specific question you're asking pertains to the solubility of oxygen and carbon dioxide in blood. Contrary to the statement, oxygen actually dissolves in blood less readily than carbon dioxide. Most of the oxygen is transported by hemoglobin in the red blood cells, not dissolved in the blood plasma. Only about 1.5% of oxygen is carried in the dissolved form, whereas a significant amount of carbon dioxide is transported dissolved in the blood. Moreover, carbon dioxide has more chemical forms in the blood than oxygen; it can be found as dissolved gas, bound to hemoglobin, or converted to bicarbonate. However, carbon dioxide has a lower affinity for hemoglobin compared to oxygen, which means that oxygen will generally displace carbon dioxide when binding to hemoglobin.

User Kaddu Livingstone
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