Provided with enough heat, magnesium and oxygen can undergo a synthesis reaction. How much magnesium oxide is produced if 50g of Mg is reacted with 50g of oxygen?
To determine the amount of magnesium oxide produced when 50g of Mg reacts with 50g of oxygen, we need to follow these steps:
Step 1: Find the molar mass of each element.
The molar mass of magnesium (Mg) is 24.31 g/mol.
The molar mass of oxygen (O2) is 32.00 g/mol.
Step 2: Convert the given masses to moles.
The number of moles can be calculated using the formula: moles = mass (g) / molar mass (g/mol).
For magnesium:
moles of Mg = 50g / 24.31 g/mol
moles of Mg = 2.05 mol (rounded to two decimal places)
For oxygen:
moles of O2 = 50g / 32.00 g/mol
moles of O2 = 1.56 mol (rounded to two decimal places)
Step 3: Determine the stoichiometry of the reaction.
The balanced chemical equation for the synthesis reaction between magnesium and oxygen is:
2 Mg + O2 -> 2 MgO
From the balanced equation, we can see that for every 2 moles of Mg, 2 moles of MgO are produced.
Step 4: Calculate the moles of MgO produced.
Since the stoichiometric ratio is 2:2, the moles of MgO produced will be the same as the moles of Mg used.
moles of MgO = moles of Mg = 2.05 mol (from Step 2)
Step 5: Convert moles of MgO to grams.
The molar mass of magnesium oxide (MgO) is 40.31 g/mol.
mass of MgO = moles of MgO * molar mass of MgO
mass of MgO = 2.05 mol * 40.31 g/mol
mass of MgO = 82.63 g (rounded to two decimal places)
Therefore, when 50g of Mg reacts with 50g of oxygen, it will produce approximately 82.63g of magnesium oxide.