Question

sulfuryl chloride is a substance used to make chemicals for killing insects. it breaks down over time into sulfur dioxide and chlorine gas. consider the following reaction: some amount of sulfuryl chloride (so₂cl₂) breaks down to produce 5 molecules of sulfur dioxide (so₂) and 5 molecules of chlorine (cl₂). complete the table below. chemical element number of atoms in the reaction o s cl during this reaction, how many molecules of sulfuryl chloride (so₂cl₂) react?

Explanation:

Step1: Analyze oxygen atoms

Each $SO_2$ molecule has 2 oxygen atoms. There are 5 $SO_2$ molecules, so the number of oxygen atoms is $2\times5 = 10$.

Step2: Analyze sulfur atoms

Each $SO_2$ molecule has 1 sulfur atom and there are 5 $SO_2$ molecules, so the number of sulfur atoms is 5.

Step3: Analyze chlorine atoms

Each $Cl_2$ molecule has 2 chlorine atoms. There are 5 $Cl_2$ molecules, so the number of chlorine atoms is $2\times5=10$.

Step4: Determine number of $SO_2Cl_2$ molecules

Since the reaction produces 5 molecules of $SO_2$ and 5 molecules of $Cl_2$, and from the formula of $SO_2Cl_2$, for every molecule of $SO_2Cl_2$ that decomposes, 1 molecule of $SO_2$ and 1 molecule of $Cl_2$ are produced. So 5 molecules of $SO_2Cl_2$ react.

Answer:

Chemical element	Number of atoms in the reaction
S	5
Cl	10

Number of $SO_2Cl_2$ molecules that react: 5