Question

How do you find the partial pressure of oxygen?

Answer 1

In what circumstance?

Explanation:

In a gaseous mixture, the partial pressure of a gaseous component is the same as the pressure it would exert if that gas alone occupied the container.

We are currently breathing air at `1` `atm` pressure. Given the normal composition of air, 78% dinitrogen, 21% dioxygen, 1% other gases, we can say quite categorically that the partial pressure of dioxygen in the atmosphere is approx. `0.2*atm`, and the partial pressure of dinitrogen is approx. `0.8*atm`. The total pressure is of course the sum of the individual partial pressures.