students are each given a 20 - gram sample of an unknown solid compound in a clear plastic bag. they are…

students are each given a 20 - gram sample of an unknown solid compound in a clear plastic bag. they are instructed to break the material into smaller parts by gently hitting it with a hammer. some of the parts break into large chunks and some look like a fine powder. which statement correctly describes these broken pieces of the sample? the fine powder pieces are individual atoms broken from the solid. the larger pieces are still compounds and the smaller pieces are elements. each piece contains the same number of atoms. each piece contains the same proportion of different elements.

students are each given a 20 - gram sample of an unknown solid compound in a clear plastic bag. they are instructed to break the material into smaller parts by gently hitting it with a hammer. some of the parts break into large chunks and some look like a fine powder. which statement correctly describes these broken pieces of the sample? the fine powder pieces are individual atoms broken from the solid. the larger pieces are still compounds and the smaller pieces are elements. each piece contains the same number of atoms. each piece contains the same proportion of different elements.

Answer

Brief Explanations:

A compound is a substance made up of two or more different - elements chemically combined in a fixed ratio. When a compound is physically broken into pieces, the chemical composition of each piece remains the same as that of the original compound. So, each piece contains the same proportion of different elements. The fine - powder pieces are not individual atoms (as compounds are made of molecules or ionic structures), and the smaller pieces are not elements if the original is a compound. Also, the number of atoms in each piece is not necessarily the same as it depends on the size of the piece.

Answer:

Each piece contains the same proportion of different elements.