12.0 g of carbon reacts with 32.0 g of oxygen to form 44.0 g of Co2. if we react 20.0 g of oxygen with 20.0 g of carbon,how many grams of carbon will be used up?..... i have no clue where to start... can u just tell me the steps to solve similar problems like this

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Certainly! To solve this type of problem, you can follow these steps:

Step 1: Write down the balanced chemical equation for the given reaction. In this case, the balanced equation is:

C + O2 → CO2

Step 2: Calculate the molar mass of each substance involved. The molar mass of carbon (C) is 12.01 g/mol, and the molar mass of oxygen (O2) is 32.00 g/mol.

Step 3: Determine the number of moles for each substance, using the given masses and molar masses. This can be done by dividing the mass of each substance by its respective molar mass. For example, to calculate the number of moles of oxygen (O2) in the given mass of 32.0 g, divide 32.0 g by 32.00 g/mol to get 1.00 mol.

Step 4: Identify the limiting reactant. The limiting reactant is the one that determines the maximum amount of product that can be formed. To do this, compare the number of moles of each reactant, using the stoichiometry of the balanced equation. The stoichiometry in this case is 1:1 for both carbon and oxygen. So, whichever reactant has fewer moles will be the limiting reactant.

In the given problem, you have 20.0 g of carbon and 20.0 g of oxygen. By performing the molar mass calculations, you will find that there are 1.67 moles of carbon and 0.625 moles of oxygen.

Since carbon has fewer moles (1.67 moles) compared to oxygen (0.625 moles), carbon is the limiting reactant.

Step 5: Calculate the quantity of the product formed using the stoichiometry of the balanced equation and the number of moles of the limiting reactant. The stoichiometry for the formation of CO2 is 1:1 with carbon. Therefore, since carbon is the limiting reactant, the amount of CO2 formed will be limited to the same number of moles as carbon.

Using the above information, we can conclude that 1.67 moles of carbon will react and produce 1.67 moles of CO2.

Step 6: Convert the number of moles of CO2 (1.67 moles) to grams using the molar mass of CO2. The molar mass of CO2 is 44.01 g/mol. Multiply the number of moles by the molar mass to find the mass of CO2 formed. In this case, it will be 1.67 moles * 44.01 g/mol = 73.27 g.

Therefore, when 20.0 g of oxygen reacts with 20.0 g of carbon, the limiting reactant (carbon) will be completely consumed and will yield 73.27 g of CO2.

To summarize, the steps to solve similar problems are:
1. Write the balanced chemical equation.
2. Calculate the molar mass of each substance.
3. Determine the number of moles for each reactant.
4. Identify the limiting reactant.
5. Calculate the quantity of product formed using the stoichiometry and the number of moles of the limiting reactant.
6. Convert the number of moles of product to grams using the molar mass of the product.

I hope this helps! Let me know if you have any further questions.