Question

Which is the most important factor in determining the state of a substance?

Answer 1

The most important state in determining the state of a substance is temperature. This is because the kinetic energy of a substance's molecules depend on its temperature. For example, an increase in temperature speeds up the movement of molecules. A decrease in temperature slows down the movement of molecules.

This is important because by increasing or decreasing a substance's temperature, you are also adding or removing energy from it. And when a substantial amount of energy has been added or removed, a substance can change its state from solid > liquid > gas or the other way around.

Answer 2

Out of the following given choices;

A. the size of the atoms in a substance

B. the number of molecules in a substance

C. the position of the electrons on the outer valence shells

D. the balance between intermolecular forces and kinetic energy

The answer is D. The kinetic energy of the molecules is determines by the temperatures of the substance. The higher the temperatures, the higher the kinetic energy of the molecules. The molecules subsequently move and collide with higher energies and overcome intermolecular forces. This allows the substance to changes state from solid to liquid and eventually to gas (with increasing kinetic energy).