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The law of Reciprocal Proportion states that, “If two different elements combine separately with the same weight of a third element, the ratio of the masses in which they do so are either the same or a simple multiple of the mass ratio in which they combine.”
Example:
Consider the reaction of 3 grams of carbon with 1 gramme of hydrogen to produce methane.
Also, water is formed when 8 g of O reacts with 1 g of H.
Carbon and oxygen have a mass ratio of 3:8 here.
Similarly, 12 grams of carbon react with 32 grams of oxygen to produce CO2.
Carbon and oxygen have a mass ratio of 12:32=3:8.
When C and O join with one other, their mass ratio is the same as when they combine individually with a fixed mass of H.
