Learning Objectives Stoichiometry The coefficients in a balanced chemical equation shows how many moles of one reactant are

needed to react with other reactants and how many moles of product will be formed. Stoichiometry is the method by which we calculate how many grams of these reactants are needed to form a given amount of product in a chemical reaction. Stoichiometry is basically the same as a recipe for cooking enchiladas. How many moles of O2 are required to burn 0.5 moles of CH4? 1 CH4 + 2 O2 CO2 + 2 H2O The "1" in front of the CH4 is for clarity in the solution of this problem and is not normally shown. The conversion factor "2 moles O2/1 mole CH4" is used to relate the moles of O2 used in the reaction to the moles of CH4 used in the reaction and to convert the units of one to the units of the other. This is a very important conversion and the key to solving these problems.

How many grams of CO2 will be produced when 0.5 moles of CH4 is burned? This conversion requires 2 steps. First convert the moles of methane to moles of carbon dioxide and then the moles of carbon dioxide to grams of carbon dioxide.

Let's try another problem. When one mole of NaOH reacts with one mole of HCl, one mole of NaCl and one mole of H2O are formed. NaOH + HCl NaCl + H2O How many grams of NaOH will react with 36.5 g of HCl? Limiting Reagent In the reaction of HCl with NaOH, if more than one mole of either NaOH or HCl is present, that excess over one mole will not have anything to react with and will remain unchanged. If you want to react two moles of HCl, you must have two moles of NaOH. If there is less of one reactant, than that reactant is called the limiting reagent. When the limiting reagent is used up, the reaction will stop. This type of calculation involves solving the problem from the basis of both individual starting materials and selecting the one that yields the smaller amount of product as the limiting reagent. How do you decide if a problem is a limiting reagent problem? If 15 g of C2H6 reacts with 64 g of O2, how many grams of CO2 will be formed? 2 C2H6 + 7 O2 4 CO2 + 6 H2O

This problem is answered by solving for the amount of CO2 formed from each reactant separately. The correct answer will be the answer having the smallest number of grams. Stoichiometry in Solution Many chemical reactions take place in solution. Therefore we need a way to measure the quantity of compounds in a solution that relates to moles. Molarity defines the concentration of a "solute" in a solution.

The term 2M NaOH is the abbreviation for 2 molar sodium hydroxide solution. This expression means that 2 moles (or 2 x 40 g = 80 g) of NaOH are dissolved in enough water to make one liter of solution. If you want to dilute a prepared solution, you must add more solvent. How many grams of HCl are found in 500 mL of stomach acid if stomach acid has a concentration about equal to 0.1 mole of acid per liter (0.1 M HCl)? Since molarity is defined as moles per liter, we must first convert the 500 milliliters to liters. Now you can use the concentration term, molarity, to change the liters to moles of HCl. Finally you change the moles of HCl to grams of HCl.

Let's try a couple of problems.

How many grams of NaCl (molar mass = 58.5 g) are needed to prepare 500 mL of a 0.15 M NaCl solution? How many mL of a 1 M HCl solution would be required to react with 20 g of NaOH? The balanced chemical equation is... HCl + NaOH Stoichiometry in the Gas Phase Some chemical reactions take place in the gas phase and others produce products that are gases. We need a way to measure the quantity of compounds in a given volume of gas and relate that to moles. One mole of a gas occupies 22.4 liters at standard temperature and pressure. This definition can be used as a conversion factor to relate moles to a volume of gas. Standard temperature is equal to 0oC or 273 K and standard pressure is equal to 1 atmosphere or 760 mm of Hg.

Atmospheric pressure is caused by the weight of the molecules in the atmosphere. This is equal to 14.7 pounds per square inch at sea level or the pressure needed to support a column of mercury 760 mm high. Gasoline is a mixture of hydrocarbons having the formula C8H18. The following equation shows the combustion reaction for gasoline. 2 C8H18 + 25 O2 18 H2O + 16 CO2 How many liters of carbon dioxide at STP are formed when one gram of gasoline is burned in an infernal combustion engine? Problems 1. If 20 g HF react with excess NaOH to form NaF and H2O, how many moles of NaF will be formed? How many grams of H2O will be formed? HF + NaOH NaF + H2O 2. If 20 g HF react with 20 g NaOH, how many grams of NaF will be formed? 3. If 3 moles of C2H6 react with excess O2, how many moles of H2O will be formed? 2 C2H6 + 7 O2 4 CO2 + 6 H2O 4. If 30 g C2H6 react with 8 g O2, how many grams of H2O will be formed?

5. How many grams of Na2CO3 will be present in 100 mL of 2M sodium carbonate solution? 6. How many grams of sodium bicarbonate are needed to prepare 500 mL of 0.1 M NaHCO3? 7. When 0.1 g of CaCO3 is dissolved in adequate water to form 1 L of solution, what is the molarity of this solution? 8. How many mL of a 1 M HCl solution would be required to react with 20 g of NaOH? HCl + NaOH NaCl + H2O 9. How many mL of a 0.1 M HCl solution would be required to react with 10 mL of a 0.2 M NaOH solution? 10. How many grams of Na2CO3 would be required to react with 500 mL of 18 M H2SO4 (battery acid)? Na2CO3 + H2SO4 Na2SO4 + H2O + CO2 Return to the Reviews of Concepts
Copyright January 2001 by Richard C. Banks...all rights reserved.