Samples of four metals A, B, C and D were taken and added to the following solution one by one. The results obtained have been tabulated as follows.
| Metal | Iron (II) sulphate | Cooper (II) sulphate | Zinc sulphate | Silver nitrate |
| A | No reaction | Displacement | ||
| B | Displacement | No reaction | ||
| C | No reaction | No reaction | No reaction | No reaction |
| D | No reaction | No reaction | No reaction | No reaction |
Use the Table above to answer the following questions about metals A, B, C and D.
(i) Which is the most reactive metal?
(ii) What would you observe if B is added to a solution of copper (II) sulphate?
(iii) Arrange the metals A, B, C and D in the order of decreasing reactivity.
Solution:
A + FeSO4 → No reaction, i.e., A is less reactive than iron
A + CuSO4 → Displacement, i.e., A is more reactive than copper
B + FeSO4 → Displacement, i.e., B is more reactive than iron
B + ZnSO4 → No reaction, i.e., B is less reactive than zinc
C + FeSO4 → No reaction, i.e., C is less reactive than iron
C + CuSO4 → No reaction, i.e., C is less reactive than copper
C + ZnSO4 → No reaction, i.e., C is less reactive than zinc
C + AgNO3 → Displacement, i.e., C is more reactive than silver
D + FeSO4/CuSO4/ZnSO4/AgNO3 → No reaction, i.e., D is less reactive than iron, copper, zinc, and silver
(i) B is most reactive metal.
(ii) B will displace copper from copper sulphate.
(iii) Arrangement of metals in the order of decreasing reactivity B>A>C>D.
