One volume of LOX is equal to how many volumes of gaseous Oxygen?

• A. Gaseous Oxygen
• B. One volume LOX
• C. 862 volumes of gaseous Oxygen
• D. Liquid Oxygen

Answer: (C)

Liquid oxygen stores a lot more mass per unit volume than oxygen does as a gas, so when it heat‑to‑gas at atmospheric pressure its volume multiplies enormously. If you take a small volume of LOX and convert it to gas, you’re essentially spreading the same number of oxygen molecules into the much larger space of a gas. Using the density of LOX and the molar volume of O2 gas gives a expansion on the order of several hundred times. The commonly cited figure around 860 times reflects this large increase in volume under ordinary conditions. So, one volume of LOX ends up producing roughly 862 volumes of gaseous oxygen because the liquid’s dense packing becomes a vast volume when it’s vaporized.