---
title: "A student measures the pressure exerted by separate \\(1.00 \\text{ mol}\\) samples of \\(\\text{CH}_4\\text{(g)}\\) and \\(\\text{NH}_3\\text{(g)}\\) in identical \\(1.00 \\text{ L}\\) rigid containers at \\(200 \\text{ K}\\). Under these conditions, the measured pressure of each gas is lower than the pressure predicted by the ideal gas law (\\(P_{\\text{measured}} < P_{\\text{ideal}}\\)), but the deviation is significantly greater for \\(\\text{NH}_3\\text{(g)}\\) than for \\(\\text{CH}_4\\text{(g)}\\). Which of the following statements best explains why \\(\\text{NH}_3\\text{(g)}\\) shows a greater reduction from ideal pressure than \\(\\text{CH}_4\\text{(g)}\\)?"
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url: "https://nerd-notes.com/ubq/119873/"
date_modified: "2026-08-21T08:16:43+00:00"
---

# A student measures the pressure exerted by separate \(1.00 \text{ mol}\) samples of \(\text{CH}_4\text{(g)}\) and \(\text{NH}_3\text{(g)}\) in identical \(1.00 \text{ L}\) rigid containers at \(200 \text{ K}\). Under these conditions, the measured pressure of each gas is lower than the pressure predicted by the ideal gas law (\(P_{\text{measured}} < P_{\text{ideal}}\)), but the deviation is significantly greater for \(\text{NH}_3\text{(g)}\) than for \(\text{CH}_4\text{(g)}\). Which of the following statements best explains why \(\text{NH}_3\text{(g)}\) shows a greater reduction from ideal pressure than \(\text{CH}_4\text{(g)}\)?

A student measures the pressure exerted by separate \(1.00 \text{ mol}\) samples of \(\text{CH}_4\text{(g)}\) and \(\text{NH}_3\text{(g)}\) in identical \(1.00 \text{ L}\) rigid containers at \(200 \text{ K}\). Under these conditions, the measured pressure of each gas is lower than the pressure predicted by the ideal gas law (\(P_{\text{measured}} < P_{\text{ideal}}\)), but the deviation is significantly greater for \(\text{NH}_3\text{(g)}\) than for \(\text{CH}_4\text{(g)}\). Which of the following statements best explains why \(\text{NH}_3\text{(g)}\) shows a greater reduction from ideal pressure than \(\text{CH}_4\text{(g)}\)?

- **A.** \(\text{NH}_3\text{(g)}\) deviates more because the volume occupied by individual \(\text{NH}_3\) molecules reduces the free volume in the container, decreasing the rate of wall collisions.
- **B.** \(\text{NH}_3\text{(g)}\) deviates more because the \(\text{N}-\text{H}\) covalent bonds have higher bond energies than \(\text{C}-\text{H}\) bonds, which reduces the kinetic energy transferred during collisions with the walls.
- **C.** \(\text{NH}_3\text{(g)}\) deviates more because \(\text{NH}_3\) has a greater molar mass than \(\text{CH}_4\), resulting in significantly more polarizable electron clouds and stronger London dispersion forces.
- **D.** \(\text{NH}_3\text{(g)}\) deviates more because dipole-dipole attractions and hydrogen bonding between polar \(\text{NH}_3\) molecules pull particles toward each other, reducing the force of collisions against the container walls.

*The answer key and step-by-step explanation are available to logged-in users at https://nerd-notes.com/ubq/119873/*