Answer these questions selecting the appropriate option given below:

Assertion (A) : Hydrogen gas is not evolved when a metal reacts with nitric acid.

Reason (R) : Nitric acid is a strong oxidizing agent.

Both A and R are true and R is the correct explanation of A.

The correct answer is option 1. Both A and R are true and R is the correct explanation of A.

Assertion (A): Hydrogen gas is not evolved when a metal reacts with nitric acid. - This statement is true. Unlike most acids where a metal replacement reaction produces hydrogen gas, reacting a metal with nitric acid does not typically result in hydrogen gas evolution.

Reason (R): Nitric acid is a strong oxidizing agent. - This statement is also true. Nitric acid (HNO₃) is a strong acid that readily accepts electrons, making it a powerful oxidizing agent.

The key concept lies in how nitric acid behaves during the reaction:

When a metal reacts with a dilute nitric acid solution, the metal displaces hydrogen from the acid. However, the oxidizing nature of nitric acid comes into play.

Nitric acid readily oxidizes the displaced hydrogen gas (H₂) to water (H₂O) by accepting electrons from the hydrogen.

This effectively consumes the hydrogen that would otherwise be released as a gas.

Therefore, both the assertion and the reason are true, and the reason explains why hydrogen gas isn't typically observed when a metal reacts with nitric acid.