Which of the following is closest to the density of freshwater at room temperature (approximately 20°C)?

• A. 2.50 g/cm^3
• B. 0.78 g/cm^3
• C. 0.50 g/cm^3
• D. 1.00 g/cm^3

Answer: (D)

Verified step by step guidance

1. Recall that density is defined as mass per unit volume, expressed as \(\text{density} = \frac{\text{mass}}{\text{volume}}\).
2. Understand that the density of pure water at room temperature (around 20°C) is a well-known standard value used in many chemistry calculations.
3. Remember that the density of freshwater at 20°C is approximately 1.00 g/cm\(^{3}\), meaning 1 gram of water occupies 1 cubic centimeter of volume.
4. Compare the given options to this standard value: 2.50 g/cm\(^{3}\) is much too high, 0.78 g/cm\(^{3}\) and 0.50 g/cm\(^{3}\) are significantly lower than the known density of water.
5. Conclude that the value closest to the density of freshwater at room temperature is 1.00 g/cm\(^{3}\).