Question

A student is given a sample of matter and asked to determine whether it is an element, compound, or mixture. The student discovers that she cannot separate

the components of the sample by physical means. However, she is able to separate the sample by chemical means into three different pure substances. The
sample must be______.

A. an element
B. a compound
C. a mixture
D. a solution

Answer 1

Answer is B

A mixture means two compounds mixed together but not atomically. For example, sand and water solution. A water with sand mixed inside is a mixture because the sand can be separated by physical means.

Water is H2O. This means it is a compound, because hydrogen and oxygen is bonded together atomically. Hydrogen however is an element, because you can't seperate it anymore (You could seperate it in the sense of protons and neutrons, but the definition of element is something you can see on the periodic table)

Compound means more than one element bonded together.

The sample must be a compound because it couldn't be seperated by physical means but can be seperated by chemical means into three pure substances (synonym of element)