ethanol is a chemical that is used in many hand sanitizers. it is produced when steam reacts with the…
ethanol is a chemical that is used in many hand sanitizers. it is produced when steam reacts with the chemical ethylene. consider the following reaction: 6 molecules of ethylene (c₂h₄) react with 6 molecules of water (h₂o) to produce some amount of ethanol (c₂h₆o). complete the table below. chemical element number of atoms in the reaction h c o during this reaction, how many molecules of ethanol (c₂h₆o) are produced?
Answer
Explanation:
Step1: Calculate number of H atoms
In 6 molecules of $C_2H_4$, number of H atoms is $6\times4 = 24$. In 6 molecules of $H_2O$, number of H atoms is $6\times2=12$. Total H atoms: $24 + 12=36$.
Step2: Calculate number of C atoms
In 6 molecules of $C_2H_4$, number of C atoms is $6\times2 = 12$. There are no C - atoms in $H_2O$. So total C atoms is 12.
Step3: Calculate number of O atoms
In 6 molecules of $H_2O$, number of O atoms is 6. There are no O - atoms in $C_2H_4$. So total O atoms is 6.
Step4: Determine number of ethanol molecules
The balanced chemical equation for the reaction is $C_2H_4+H_2O\rightarrow C_2H_6O$. Since we have 6 molecules of $C_2H_4$ and 6 molecules of $H_2O$, and the ratio of $C_2H_4$ to $H_2O$ to $C_2H_6O$ is 1:1:1, 6 molecules of $C_2H_6O$ are produced.
Answer:
| Chemical element | Number of atoms in the reaction |
|---|---|
| H | 36 |
| C | 12 |
| O | 6 |
| 6 |