Which substance can not be decomposed by ordinary chemical means? how?
1. methane
2. mercury
3. ethanol
4. ammonia
so its mercury?
which is?
Log on to www.google.com and type in formula methane and see what it is.
type in mercury and see.
type in ethanol and see.
type in ammonia and see.
An element is just one material; i.e., it may not have anything connected to it. Methane, for example, is CH4. That is a compound composed of Carbon and Hyrogen. Compounds are not elements.
exactly
The substance that cannot be decomposed by ordinary chemical means is mercury (option 2). Mercury is a chemical element with the symbol Hg and atomic number 80. It is a metal that is liquid at room temperature and has a low vapor pressure. The reason why mercury cannot be decomposed by ordinary chemical means is because it is an element, which means it consists of only one type of atom.
Elements are the simplest form of matter and cannot be broken down into simpler substances using chemical methods. In contrast, compounds like methane (CH4), ethanol (C2H5OH), and ammonia (NH3) are made up of multiple elements chemically bonded together. These compounds can be decomposed by applying specific chemical reactions.
For example, methane can be decomposed into its constituent elements (carbon and hydrogen) by burning it in the presence of oxygen. Ethanol can be decomposed by heating it in the presence of a catalyst to break it down into carbon dioxide and water. Ammonia can be decomposed into nitrogen and hydrogen gases by passing it over a heated catalyst.
However, mercury cannot be decomposed into simpler substances using ordinary chemical reactions. To separate the elements in mercury, more specialized methods such as electrolysis or thermolysis need to be employed. These methods involve the use of high temperatures or electrical currents to break down the mercury into its constituent atoms.