The anesthetic chloroform (CHCI3, molar mass=119.36 g/mol) can be prepared by the reaction of methane CH4 molar mass= 16.04 g/mol with chlorine according to the following balanced equation: CH4+3CI2 CHCI3+3HCI
Assuming 10.50g of methane and 20.50g of chlorine are used, answer the following questions:
How many moles of methane are used? Be sure your answer has the correct number of significant figures.
To find the number of moles of methane used, we first need to convert the mass of methane given (10.50g) to moles.
Step 1: Calculate the molar mass of methane (CH4)
Molar mass of CH4 = 12.01 g/mol (C) + 4(1.01 g/mol) = 16.04 g/mol
Step 2: Calculate the number of moles of methane
Number of moles = mass / molar mass
Number of moles = 10.50 g / 16.04 g/mol ≈ 0.6546 mol
Therefore, approximately 0.655 moles of methane are used.