"Soft drink bottles are sealed under high pressure to increase the solubility of carbon dioxide" is the application of which of the following laws:
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 2
The correct answer is Option (2) → Henry's law
Henry’s law states that the solubility of a gas in a liquid is directly proportional to the partial pressure of the gas above the liquid. In terms of the mole fraction of the gas in the solution:
\( \displaystyle p = K_{\mathrm{H}}\,x \)
A soft drink bottle is filled and sealed under a high pressure of \( \ce{CO2} \), so much more \( \ce{CO2} \) dissolves than would at normal pressure. When the bottle is opened, the pressure drops, the solubility falls, and the extra gas escapes as bubbles. This is a direct application of Henry’s law.
Why the other options are incorrect
Option (1) Dalton's law — Incorrect. Dalton’s law of partial pressures says that the total pressure of a gas mixture is the sum of the partial pressures of its components; it says nothing about solubility.
Option (3) Charles's law — Incorrect. Charles’s law relates the volume of a gas to its temperature at constant pressure (\( V \propto T \)).
Option (4) Boyle's law — Incorrect. Boyle’s law relates the pressure and volume of a gas at constant temperature (\( pV \) = constant); it deals with the gas alone, not with a gas dissolving in a liquid.
NCERT (2026-27 edition):
Solubility of a Gas in a Liquid – …
