Question

You and your friend are each drinking cola from separate 2-L bottles. Both colas are equally carbonated. You can drink 1 L of cola, but your friend can drink only about half a liter. You each close the bottles, and place them in the refrigerator. The next day when you each go to get the colas, whose will be more carbonated and why?

Short answer

The half-drunk bottle will be more carbonated than less drunk bottle.

Step-by-step solution

  Temparature:

Bottles in the refrigerator have the same temperature so they would dissolve the same relative volume of carbon dioxide.

Step-2:  Extent of carbonation:

The half-drunk bottle will have lot of space above then cola but the other bottle has less open space above the liquid.

The half-drunk bottle has more space, so more ${\text{CO}}_{\text{2}}$can move into the air above the liquid than can the bottle with less space.

Therefore, the half-drunk bottle will be more carbonated than less drunk bottle.