Final answer:
The formula of the second oxide is M₂O₃ (Option A).
Step-by-step explanation:
The formula of the second oxide can be determined based on the given percentage of oxygen by mass. Since the first oxide is M₂O (which means it contains two atoms of metal and one atom of oxygen), we can use this information to find the formula of the second oxide.
Let's assume the second oxide has the formula MOₓ, where x represents the number of atoms of oxygen. Since it contains 53.4% oxygen by mass, we can calculate the percentage of metal in the oxide. 100% - 53.4% = 46.6%
This means the second oxide contains 46.6% of metal by mass. Since the first oxide contains 63.6% of metal by mass (100% - 36.4% = 63.6%), we can compare the ratios of metal in both oxides.
First oxide: Metal mass/Oxygen mass = 63.6%/36.4% ≈ 1.75
Second oxide: Metal mass/Oxygen mass = 46.6%/53.4% ≈ 0.87
The ratio in the second oxide is approximately 1:0.87. In order to simplify the ratio and get the formula of the second oxide, we multiply both numbers by 2 to get the smallest whole number ratio.
First oxide: M₂O
Second oxide: M₁.₇₄Oₓ → approximately M₂O₃
Therefore, the formula of the second oxide is A. M₂O₃.