Dalton's Atomic theory could not explain which of the following?
- Law of multiple proportion
- Law of gaseous volume
- Law of conservation of mass
- Law of constant proportion
Answer
(2) Law of gaseous volume
Solution
As per NCERT, Dalton's atomic theory could explain the laws of chemical combination (conservation of mass, constant proportions and multiple proportions), because atoms are neither created nor destroyed and combine in fixed, simple whole-number ratios.
However, it could not explain the law of gaseous volumes (Gay-Lussac).
∵ e.g. 1 volume H2 + 1 volume Cl2 → 2 volumes HCl; with indivisible atoms each HCl would need half an atom of H and Cl. This was explained later by Avogadro's idea of molecules.
Answer: (2)