1. Gases are easy to compress
2. Gases expand to fill their containers
3. Gases occupy much more space than their respective liquids and solids

COMPRESSIBILITY

• Liquids are much harder to compress than gases
• Most solids are even harder to compress than liquids
  • Exceptions: natural and synthetic rubber
    • e.g. the air (gases) inside a ball are compressed, making the ball bounce and maintain its shape.

EXPANDABILITY

• Causes odor to fill a room
• Can be assumed that volume of gas = volume of container

RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN VOLUME OF GASES VS LIQUIDS OR SOLIDS

• Generally, the volume of a liquid or solid increase approximately 800 times when it forms a gas
• Large change in volume can be utilized to do work
  • e.g. steam engine - escaping steam can be made to do work
  • e.g. dynamite - liquid nitroglycerin produces 29 moles of gas for every 4 moles of liquid when detonated; each mole of gas occupies about 800 times more space than each mole of liquid
  • e.g. popcorn - when oil inside is heated, it turns to gases and the kernel explodes

Next:  "Elements and Compounds that are Gases at Room Temperature"