Here’s a simple explanation of Dalton’s Law of Partial Pressures:
- Definition: The total pressure of a mixture of gases is equal to the sum of the pressures of each gas in the mixture.
- Key idea: Each gas behaves independently as if the other gases weren’t there.
- In simple terms: Total pressure = pressure of gas 1 + pressure of gas 2 + pressure of gas 3 …
Example: In a mixture of oxygen and nitrogen, the total pressure = pressure of oxygen + pressure of nitrogen.