Question

How do properties, such as Density, help us to classify and identify matter?

Answer 1

Density can be defined in terms of the mass of a substance present in a certain volume.

i.e. Density = Mass/ volume

It helps classify and identify matter due to the following reasons:

1) Density is an intensive property. For a given substance the density will remain the same irrespective of the amount in which it is present.

For example: The density of Aluminum (Al) = 2.7 g/cm3. This value is a constant at a certain temperature and pressure. Therefore, the density will remain the same for 1 kilogram or 1 mg of Al

2) Different elements/compounds have different values of densities which is characteristic of that substance