Students in Mr. Stoval's class were studying weathering and erosion. One group of students placed some limestone chips in a beaker. Next they poured in 50 ml of water to which they added 5 ml dilute HCl. After 48 hours, the limestone chips had almost disappeared and the water was cloudy. This simple experiment is an example of what process on Earth?(1 point)

Question

Responses

Water physically erodes limestone and it is carried away by moving groundwater.
Water physically erodes limestone and it is carried away by moving groundwater.

Acid rain falls over limestone rock and washes particles away. This is the result of the kinetic energy of the moving water and it is a physical process.
Acid rain falls over limestone rock and washes particles away. This is the result of the kinetic energy of the moving water and it is a physical process.

Acid rain falls on limestone rock and physically dissolves the particles in the rock. This is similar to dissolving salt in water. It occurs in places where evaporite form.
Acid rain falls on limestone rock and physically dissolves the particles in the rock. This is similar to dissolving salt in water. It occurs in places where evaporite form.

Acidic groundwater or precipitation chemically reacts with limestone resulting in Karst features.

Answer 1

The best response to describe the process observed in the experiment is:

Acidic groundwater or precipitation chemically reacts with limestone resulting in Karst features.

This explanation accurately captures the chemical weathering that occurs when acid (in this case, dilute HCl) reacts with limestone (which is primarily composed of calcium carbonate), leading to the dissolution of the limestone and the potential formation of karst topography.