Achemical reaction was used to separate a sample into its components. what conclusion about the sample can be formed based on the technique used?
a: it was a pure substance
b: it was a compound
c: it was a heterogeneous mixture
d: it was a homogeneous mixture

B: It was a compound

Explanation:

If a chemical reaction was used to separate a sample into its components,  then it was a compound. For example, water (H2O, a compound) can be separated by electrolysis into oxygen and hydrogen (its components). the chemical reaction is:

2 H2O -> O2 + 2 H2

Heterogeneous and homogeneous mixtures can be separated by physical ways. Pure substance can be either a compound or an element, so this option is not specific enough to be the correct answer.

a mercury barometer is a device that uses the physical properties of mercury in a tube to measure barometric pressure. mercury barometers are used for : -

1. measurement of atmospheric pressure  

2. determining the altitude of a place

3. weather forecasting

4. calibration and checking of aneroid barometers

5. application in fluid mechanics

6. measurement of pressure in aircrafts

7. surface weather analysis

8. preparation of barographs

9. usage in physical sciences like physics, astronomy & chemistry

10. preparation of aircraft altimeters

characteristics of mercury barometer : -

1.used to define and measure atmospheric pressure.

2.on the average at sea level the column of mercury rises to a height of about 760 mm.

3.this quantity is equal to 1 atmosphere.

4.it is also known as standard atmospheric pressure.

5.a barometer in which the weight of a column of mercury in a glass tube with a sealed top is balanced against that of the atmosphere pressing on an exposed cistern of mercury at the base of the mercury column, the height of the column varying with atmospheric pressure.