Question

Name the state of matter that can be easily compressed.

Answer 1

Hint: To answer this question, you should recall the properties of matter. The matter has different states which depend on the intermolecular forces as well as the arrangement of particles.

Complete step by step answer:
Matter can be divided into solid, liquid and gas. We can convert one state into another state by changing the physical conditions like temperature and pressure.
Among these states, Solids have a characteristic tight atomic bond and possess high viscosity.
The liquid state of matter is almost an incompressible fluid that takes the shape of the container it is put in as well as possesses a fixed volume. Intermolecular forces are weaker than solids. Enough intermolecular space makes the flow of liquid possible.
Now the gaseous state possesses molecules having high kinetic energy as intermolecular forces experienced between them are negligible and intermolecular distances between the molecules are large. They do not have a fixed shape and volume. They possess high compressibility and thermal expansion.
Hence, the state of matter that can be easily compressed is the gaseous state.

Note:
 Make sure you remember that at conditions of high temperature and lower pressure, a real gas behaves like an ideal gas, because the potential energy due to intermolecular attractive forces becomes less significant compared with the particles’ kinetic energy, and the size of the molecules becomes less significant compared to the space between them. Along with different speeds, you should know the concept of the Maxwell-Boltzmann equation. The Maxwell-Boltzmann equation helps define the distribution of speeds for gas at various temperatures. From this distribution graph function, the most probable speed, the average speed, and the root-mean-square speed can be derived. The most probable speed is the speed most likely to be possessed by any molecule in the system.