True or false. Gas particles never touch each other.

Question

A.
False; gas particles can touch each other when they collide.
B.
True; gas particles move too rapidly to ever touch.
C.
False; gas particles are constantly touching each other.
D.
True; gas particles are located too far apart to ever touch.

Answer 1

A. False; gas particles can touch each other when they collide.

This option is technically correct, as gas particles do collide with each other, but they are generally considered to have negligible volume compared to the space they occupy, which leads to the understanding that they mostly do not "touch" in the way that solid or liquid particles do. The best answer in the context of the question is:

D. True; gas particles are located too far apart to ever touch.

This is often how gas behavior is understood in terms of the kinetic molecular theory, which emphasizes that gas particles are in constant motion and typically have large distances between them compared to their sizes.