Elemental sulfur can form sulfur trioxide when burned. When sulfur trioxide is dissolved in water, it yields sulfuric acid. The net reaction is shown. What mass of sulfur is needed to yield 138 grams of sulfuric acid.
S8(s) + 12O2(g) + 8H2O(l) --> 8H2SO4(l)
Help?
Ok, I think I might have just had a lightbulb moment.
(138 g H2SO4)/(98 g H2SO4/mol)/(8 moles S8)x(256 g S8)= 45.1 g S8
=45.1g S8 <---can someone confirm????
The number is correct but look at the algebra. I don't think you have 8 mols S8; you have 1 mol S8. Check this out.
mols H2SO4 = 138/98. OK.
Convert to mols S8. That will be
138/98 x (1 mol S8/8 mol H2SO4).
Now convert that to g S8
138/98 x (1/8) x (molar mass S8) =
138/98 x (1/8) x (8*32) = 45.1
If I went through your algebra correctly, you made an error in algebra which just happened to produce the correct answer (with the 8S8 in your answer).
(138 g H2SO4)/(98 g H2SO4/mol)/(8 moles S8)x(256 g S8)= 45.1 g S8 Should have been:
(138 g H2SO4)/(98 g H2SO4/mol)/(8 moles {{{H2SO4}}})x(256 g S8)= 45.1 g S8
I typed S8 by mistake instead of H2SO4, I had H2SO4 on my paper.
Thanks for your help.
To find the mass of sulfur needed to yield 138 grams of sulfuric acid, we need to use stoichiometry and the balanced equation.
First, let's compare the balanced equation to the stoichiometry of sulfur. From the equation, we see that 1 mole of S8 reacts to produce 8 moles of H2SO4.
Next, we need to find the molar mass of H2SO4. The molar mass of H2SO4 is calculated as follows:
(2 x molar mass of hydrogen) + molar mass of sulfur + (4 x molar mass of oxygen)
= (2 x 1.01 g/mol) + 32.07 g/mol + (4 x 16.00 g/mol)
= 98.09 g/mol
Now, we can set up a proportion to find the amount of sulfur needed:
(1 mole of S8 / 8 moles of H2SO4) = (mass of sulfur / 138 g)
Cross-multiplying:
mass of sulfur = (1 mole of S8 / 8 moles of H2SO4) * 138 g
Finally, convert the moles of S8 to grams:
molar mass of S8 = 256.54 g/mol (8 x 32.07 g/mol)
mass of sulfur = [(1 mole of S8 / 8 moles of H2SO4) * 138 g] * (molar mass of S8 / 1 mole of S8)
= (138 g * 256.54 g/mol) / (8 * 98.09 g/mol)
Calculating the final answer:
mass of sulfur = 569.7 g (rounded to one decimal place)
Therefore, approximately 569.7 grams of sulfur are needed to yield 138 grams of sulfuric acid.