Each student in Ms. Major's class was given an unknown substance. Ms. Major gave her students a list, shown below, of substances and their properties to help them identify their unknown.

Question

Substance Density Boiling Point Appearance
Water 1.0 g/mL 100°C colorless liquid
Ethanol 0.789 g/mL 78.4°C colorless liquid
Sodium Hydroxide 2.13 g/mL 1388°C white solid
Phosphoric Acid 1.685 g/mL 158°C white solid or colorless liquid

If a student's unknown is a white solid and its density was calculated to be about 1.7 g/mL, it is most likely _______.
A.
phosphoric acid
B.
sodium hydroxide
C.
water
D.
ethanol

Answer 1

If the student's unknown is a white solid with a density of approximately 1.7 g/mL, it most likely corresponds to phosphoric acid, which has a density of 1.685 g/mL and can appear as a white solid.

Therefore, the correct answer is: A. phosphoric acid