A certain amount of methane is burned. Using stoichiometry it is calculated that 18.85 g of carbon dioxide should be produced. Carried out in the lab, 16.34 g of carbon dioxide are actually produced. What is the theoretical yield of the reaction?
18.85 g CO2 is the theoretical yield.
Actual yield is 16.34.
Percent yield, although you didn'task for it, is
%Yield = (16.34/18.85)*100 = ?
To find the theoretical yield of the reaction, we need to use stoichiometry and the balanced chemical equation of the reaction.
Step 1: Write the balanced chemical equation for the reaction.
Assuming the reaction is:
CH4 + O2 -> CO2 + H2O
Step 2: Determine the molar ratio between methane (CH4) and carbon dioxide (CO2) in the balanced equation.
Based on the balanced equation, the molar ratio between CH4 and CO2 is 1:1.
Step 3: Convert the given mass of carbon dioxide to moles.
Given mass of CO2 = 16.34 g
Molar mass of CO2 = 44.01 g/mol (carbon: 12.01 g/mol, oxygen: 2x16.00 g/mol)
Number of moles of CO2 = given mass / molar mass = 16.34 g / 44.01 g/mol ≈ 0.371 mol
Step 4: Calculate the theoretical yield of CO2 (in moles).
Since the molar ratio of CH4 to CO2 is 1:1, the number of moles of CH4 required to produce 0.371 mol of CO2 is also 0.371 mol.
Step 5: Convert the moles of CH4 to grams.
Molar mass of CH4 = 16.04 g/mol (carbon: 12.01 g/mol, hydrogen: 4x1.01 g/mol)
Theoretical yield of CH4 = 0.371 mol × 16.04 g/mol ≈ 5.96 g
Therefore, the theoretical yield of the reaction is approximately 5.96 grams.