Cutting of wood is a physical change or chemical change? It is a physical change, but it cannot be joined again…then explain.
The Correct Answer and Explanation is:
Cutting of wood is considered a physical change, even though the pieces cannot be joined back together exactly as before. A physical change is any change that affects the size, shape, or state of a material without altering its chemical composition. In the case of cutting wood, the material is simply divided into smaller pieces, but the chemical structure of the wood remains unchanged.
For example, when a log of wood is cut into planks or small blocks, the wood is still chemically the same substance. It remains composed of cellulose, lignin, and other organic compounds that make up wood. There is no new substance formed during the cutting process. This is why cutting is classified as a physical change.
Some people may argue that since the pieces cannot be joined perfectly as they were before, it feels like a permanent change. However, reversibility is not always the deciding factor for classifying a change as physical or chemical. Many physical changes are irreversible in practice, but they do not involve a change in the substance’s chemical identity. For example, breaking glass or tearing paper are also physical changes, even though the original form cannot be restored easily.
In contrast, a chemical change involves a transformation at the molecular level, where the original substances react to form new substances with different properties. Burning wood, for instance, is a chemical change because it produces ash, carbon dioxide, water vapor, and other new materials that are chemically different from wood.
Therefore, cutting wood is a physical change because it only alters the form and size of the wood, not its chemical composition, even though putting the pieces back exactly as they were may not be possible.
