Question

Hydrogen supports combustion.
A. True
B. False

Answer 1

Hint: Burning of wood in a fire is an example of a combustion reaction. In this reaction, the carbohydrates in wood combine with oxygen to form water and carbon dioxide. Hydrogen is the most abundant chemical substance in the universe, constituting roughly 75% of all baryonic mass.

Complete step by step answer:
First let’s understand what combustion is.
Combustion is nothing but a scientific word for burning. So, what happens in a combustion reaction is that a substance reacts with oxygen from the air and transfers energy to the surroundings as light and heat , this is why we see flames when things burn. The products of combustion reactions are compounds of oxygen , called oxides.
Let us see the combustion reaction of methane.
Methane reacts with oxygen from the air and produces either a hot blue or an orange flame. As we know methane is made up of atoms of carbon and hydrogen, the products of its combustion reaction are oxides of carbon and hydrogen. The names of these oxides are carbon dioxide and water.

Now, let us find out whether hydrogen supports combustion or not!
Hydrogen is a very combustible element in the presence of oxygen, but it does not support combustion as oxygen does. Which means hydrogen burns itself but does not allow substances to burn in it. Pure hydrogen burns with oxygen with a non-luminous blue flame with a unique pop sound.

Let us understand better with an example!
Consider a jar filled with hydrogen with inverted mouth downwards and introduce a burning candle near the mouth of the jar, the gas burns at the mouth of the jar while the burning candle gets put off. This shows that hydrogen is combustible but not a supporter of combustion.

Therefore, Hydrogen does not support combustion.

Note: The ability of hydrogen to produce heat with oxygen makes it a good fuel. Hydrogen is the only element that can exist without neutrons. Hydrogen is believed to be one of three elements produced in the Big Bang; the other elements are helium and lithium.