Lesson 4.9.1.1

4.9.1.1 The proportions of different gases in the atmosphere Quiz: AQA Chemistry, Unit 9

20 questions

Written by Revision Ninja · Last reviewed 11 October 2026

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Lesson 4.9.1.1, The proportions of different gases in the atmosphere: 20 multiple choice questions for the AQA GCSE Chemistry (8462), Unit 9: Chemistry of the atmosphere, written with Revision Ninja.

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The 20 questions

  1. Approximately what percentage of the atmosphere is nitrogen?

    • About 80%
    • About 50%
    • About 20%
    • About 1%

  2. Approximately what percentage of the atmosphere is oxygen?

    • About 50%
    • About 0.04%
    • About 80%
    • About 20%

  3. Which gas makes up approximately four-fifths of the current Earth atmosphere?

    • Argon
    • Carbon dioxide
    • Oxygen
    • Nitrogen

  4. For roughly how long have the atmospheric proportions been much the same?

    • 20 years
    • 200 million years
    • 2 billion years
    • 2 million years

  5. Which gas is the most abundant in the atmosphere?

    • Water vapour
    • Nitrogen
    • Carbon dioxide
    • Oxygen

  6. Using the approximate figures, what volume of oxygen is in 1000 cm3 of air?

    • About 20 cm3
    • About 800 cm3
    • About 500 cm3
    • About 200 cm3

  7. Nitrogen makes up about four-fifths of air. Which fraction does this represent?

    • 1/5
    • 4/5
    • 1/4
    • 4/10

  8. Taking nitrogen as 80% and oxygen as 20%, what is the approximate ratio of nitrogen to oxygen by volume?

    • 1 : 4
    • 2 : 1
    • 4 : 1
    • 5 : 1

  9. In a 2000 cm3 sample of air, roughly how much is oxygen?

    • 400 cm3
    • 1600 cm3
    • 200 cm3
    • 40 cm3

  10. Which description best fits carbon dioxide in air?

    • A small proportion
    • About one-fifth
    • About four-fifths
    • The main gas

  11. Why is 25% an incorrect value for the percentage of oxygen in air?

    • Oxygen is about 80%
    • Oxygen is about 20%
    • Oxygen is exactly 50%
    • Oxygen is only 1%

  12. What total percentage do nitrogen and oxygen make up together in air?

    • About 60%
    • About 40%
    • About 99%
    • About 90%

  13. A 250 cm3 sample of air is considered. About how much of it is oxygen?

    • 50 cm3
    • 5 cm3
    • 40 cm3
    • 200 cm3

  14. What term describes the proportion of noble gases in the atmosphere?

    • About 80%
    • About 20%
    • A major component
    • A small proportion

  15. A 500 cm3 sample of air is analysed. Which volume of nitrogen would be expected?

    • About 100 cm3
    • About 250 cm3
    • About 400 cm3
    • About 500 cm3

  16. For how many years have the proportions of different gases in the atmosphere been much the same?

    • 200 million years
    • 4.6 billion years
    • 50 million years
    • 100 million years

  17. Which unit of proportion is most often used when describing gases in air?

    • Concentration in moles
    • Ratio by weight
    • Percentage by volume
    • Percentage by mass

  18. What is the approximate percentage of nitrogen in the Earth's atmosphere?

    • 80%
    • 1%
    • 50%
    • 20%

  19. Which two gases make up approximately 99 percent of the modern atmosphere?

    • Oxygen and argon
    • Carbon dioxide and methane
    • Nitrogen and oxygen
    • Nitrogen and carbon dioxide

  20. What fraction of the atmosphere is approximately made up of oxygen?

    • One-tenth
    • One-fifth
    • Four-fifths
    • One-half

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