Summary:
- Compressibility is the measure of how much a given volume of matter decreases when placed under pressure.
- Gases are compressible because most of the volume of a gas is composed of the large amounts of empty space between the gas particles.
- At room temperature and standard pressure, the average distance between gas molecules is about ten times the diameter of the molecules themselves.
- In hospitals, oxygen is often used for patients who have damaged lungs to help them breathe better.
- Welding requires very hot flames produced by compresses acetylene and oxygen mixtures.