149 questions and answers in this section

Natural Sciences » Chemistry

Explain why bleach whitens clothing?

Explain why bleach whitens clothing?

Household bleach is mainly composed of sodium hypochlorite dissolved in water. Essentially, it is a diluted solution that contains active chlorine, the primary agent responsible...

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Explain why does newspaper absorb ink better than smooth paper?

Explain why does newspaper absorb ink better than smooth paper?

Newsprint is primarily made of mechanical wood fibers, obtained by grinding wood directly. These fibers are short, coarser, and create a very porous paper, ideal...

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Explain why does alcohol disinfect wounds?

Explain why does alcohol disinfect wounds?

The alcohol used as a disinfectant is usually ethanol or isopropyl alcohol. These are simple molecules made up primarily of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen. What...

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Explain why does soap make oil stains disappear?

Explain why does soap make oil stains disappear?

Soap is made of special molecules called surfactants. They have two completely opposite parts: one end that loves water (hydrophilic) and another that greatly prefers...

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Explain why water is wet?

Explain why water is wet?

Water is quite simple: two hydrogen atoms bonded to one oxygen atom (H₂O). But be careful, these atoms do not share their electrons equally! Oxygen...

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Explain why diamonds are so hard?

Explain why diamonds are so hard?

Diamonds are made up solely of carbon atoms bonded together in a very particular way. Each atom is surrounded by four other atoms in a...

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Explain why is a flame colored?

Explain why is a flame colored?

When we observe the color of a flame, we are actually looking at a chemical phenomenon related to combustion and how atoms react to heat. Atoms contain...

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Explain why paper changes color when it is burned?

Explain why paper changes color when it is burned?

Paper is essentially made of plant fibers primarily derived from cellulose, a natural substance found in wood. This cellulose consists of long chains of sugar...

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Explain why does chocolate melt in the mouth?

Explain why does chocolate melt in the mouth?

Chocolate is a rather unique solid, primarily composed of cocoa butter, which gives it that creamy texture. At ordinary room temperature, chocolate is usually hard...

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Explain why traffic lights are generally red, yellow, and green.

Explain why traffic lights are generally red, yellow, and green.

From the age of the first railway lines in the 19th century, English engineers were already using colored lights as signals. The red, a color...

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