Humber Admissions Practice Test

What is typically produced in a double-displacement reaction?

1. Only a solid precipitate

2. Only gas

3. Gas, solid precipitate, or molecular compound

4. Only energy

The correct answer is: Gas, solid precipitate, or molecular compound

In a double-displacement reaction, the typical products can include gas, solid precipitate, or molecular compounds, which makes this option accurate. In this type of reaction, two compounds exchange ions or elements to form two new compounds. Depending on the specific reactants involved and the conditions of the reaction, various products may be formed. For instance, when an aqueous solution of sodium sulfate and barium chloride are mixed, barium sulfate, which is a solid precipitate, forms along with sodium chloride, a soluble ionic compound. Additionally, if the reactants yield a gas, such as carbon dioxide, when an acid reacts with a carbonate, this can also occur in double-displacement reactions. Therefore, due to the versatile nature of double-displacement reactions, multiple types of products can result, solidifying the rationale that the correct answer encompasses these three possibilities.