A scientist is conducting an experiment where they need to compress a gas to fit it into a smaller container. They also have a liquid that they wish to place in the same container. What can the scientist conclude about the behavior of the gas and the liquid during this process?

When the scientist squeezes the gas into a smaller vessel, the gas molecules crowd together and the pressure rises, showing that gases can change their volume. The liquid, however, does not change its volume appreciably when the same pressure is applied, because liquids are nearly incompressible. Thus the scientist can conclude that the gas will occupy more of the container’s space as it is compressed, while the liquid will keep its original volume and simply sit beside the gas. For example, if a container holds 1 L of water and the scientist compresses a gas into the remaining 0. 5 L, the water stays at 1 L and the gas’s volume shrinks to fit the 0.