Under which set of conditions do real gases deviate the most from the ideal gas law?

• A. Moderate temperature and moderate pressure
• B. Low temperature and low pressure
• C. Low temperature and high pressure
• D. High temperature and low pressure

Answer: (C)

Verified step by step guidance

1. Recall that the ideal gas law assumes no interactions between gas molecules and that the volume of gas molecules themselves is negligible.
2. Understand that real gases deviate from ideal behavior when these assumptions fail, which typically happens at low temperatures and high pressures.
3. At low temperatures, gas molecules have less kinetic energy, so intermolecular attractions become significant, causing deviations from ideality.
4. At high pressures, gas molecules are forced closer together, making the volume of the molecules themselves non-negligible and increasing intermolecular interactions.
5. Therefore, the greatest deviation from the ideal gas law occurs under conditions of low temperature and high pressure.