Chemistry Challenge: Maximum Mass of Aluminum Oxide Produced

How much aluminum oxide can be produced when aluminum reacts with oxygen gas?

Given:
Aluminum (Al): 15.6 g, Molar Mass: 26.98 g/mol
Oxygen (O2): 14.3 g, Molar Mass: 32.00 g/mol
Aluminum Oxide (Al2O3): Molar Mass: 101.96 g/mol

Maximum Mass of Aluminum Oxide Produced:

The maximum mass of aluminum oxide (Al2O3) that can be produced is approximately 30.38 grams.

Explanation:

To determine the maximum mass of aluminum oxide produced, we use stoichiometry to calculate the quantities in the chemical reaction between aluminum and oxygen gas. The balanced equation for the reaction is 4Al + 3O2 → 2Al2O3.

We start by finding the number of moles of the reactants. With 15.6 g of aluminum and 14.3 g of oxygen gas, we calculate 0.578 mol of Al and 0.447 mol of O2 using their molar masses.

By comparing the moles of aluminum and oxygen, we identify oxygen as the limiting reactant in this reaction. The stoichiometry indicates that 0.298 mol of Al2O3 can be produced from the given quantities.

Since the molar mass of Al2O3 is 101.96 g/mol, the maximum mass of Al2O3 that can be formed is 30.38 grams.