Consider the decomposition reaction of the following represented hydrogen peroxide:
2 H2O2 (aq) = 2 H2O + O2
In the experiment, the average speed of this
reaction given time interval was 16 mol • s-¹ in relation to hydrogen peroxide. What is the average speed production of oxygen gas in the same time interval?
Half as many O2 molecules produced as H2O2 molecules disintegrated
To find the average speed of oxygen gas production in the given time interval, we need to first understand the stoichiometry of the reaction. From the balanced equation:
2 H2O2 (aq) = 2 H2O + O2
We can see that for every 2 moles of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) that decompose, 1 mole of oxygen gas (O2) is produced.
Given that the average speed of the decomposition reaction in terms of hydrogen peroxide is 16 mol • s^⁻1, we can conclude that in the same time interval, the average speed of oxygen gas production will be half of that.
So, the average speed of oxygen gas production in the given time interval would be:
16 mol • s^⁻1 ÷ 2 = 8 mol • s^⁻1
Therefore, the average speed of oxygen gas production in the same time interval is 8 mol • s^⁻1.