Question

Students in chemistry class have been given the assignment to use flame test emission data to determine the identity of an

unknown substance. When the students put a sample of the unknown compound in the flame, blue and green colors were visible.
What could be one explanation for these results?
A)
The Bunsen burner must not be working properly.
B)
The unknown substance must be a sodium compound.
C)
The unknown substance contained both copper and lead.
D)
It is impossible to narrow down anything about the unknown.

Answer 1

The blue and green colors observed during the flame test suggest the presence of copper and barium in the unknown substance. Hence the correct answer is option D

Step-by-step explanation:

The blue and green colors observed during the flame test indicate the presence of certain elements in the unknown substance. Each element has a unique emission spectrum, and the colors emitted by the flame can be used to identify the elements. In this case, the blue color suggests the presence of copper, while the green color suggests the presence of barium. Therefore, one possible explanation for these results is that the unknown substance contains both copper and barium.

Hence the correct answer is option D