Which of the following is a heterogeneous mixture? air. salt water. steel. soil.

Heterogenous mixtures are the ones in which we can see the different components clearly. Air is considered to be homogenous, because we don't see the different noble gases' particles floating around. Salt water is also homogenous, because salt dissolves almost completely into water, becoming hard to see without the proper equipment salt particles in it. Steel is also homogenous, since the metals that compose it are mixed during the heating. The only heterogenous would be soil, because we can see different particles in it, with different sizes, shapes, colors, etc without having to use special equipment.

is a heterogeneous mixture.

Further Explanation:

Mixtures are composed of two or more substances. No fixed formula is present in these and their composition is also variable. There is retention in the properties of constituent particles even after the formation of mixtures. Some examples of mixtures are smog, mud, sea water and blood.

Types of mixtures:

1. Homogeneous mixtures

“Homo” refers to the “same Homogeneous mixtures are the mixtures that have uniform composition throughout. Such mixtures are present in single phase only. Rain, vinegar and orange juice are examples of a homogenous mixture.

2. Heterogeneous mixtures

Hetero” means “different”. Heterogeneous mixtures are the mixtures that have non-uniform composition throughout. These have more than one phase. Chocolate chip cookies and soda are examples of heterogeneous mixture.

Air is made up of several gases in different amounts. But all of the constituent particles of air are gases so it is a homogeneous mixture.

Salt gets completely dissolved in water and salt water exists in a single phase only. Therefore salt water is a homogeneous mixture.

Steel is an alloy of different metallic components and these components are uniformly distributed throughout the sample of steel. Therefore it is a homogeneous mixture.

Soil consists of a variety of particles such as sand, organic matter, water, pebbles, minerals, and air. All these components have non-uniform composition throughout the whole sample of soil. Therefore it is a heterogeneous mixture.

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Answer details:

Grade: High School

Subject: Chemistry

Chapter: Elements, compounds, and mixtures

Keywords: soil, air, salt water, steel, mixture, homogeneous, heterogeneous, uniform, non-uniform, sand, minerals, pebbles, alloy, gases, single phase.