if a chemical reaction occurring at stp produces a change from 5 moles of gaseous reactants to 2 moles of gaseous product, what is the overall change in volume of the system?
To determine the overall change in volume of the system, we need to consider the stoichiometry of the reaction and the ideal gas law. Assuming the reaction is balanced and there are no changes in temperature or pressure, we can use the ideal gas law equation, PV = nRT, where P is the pressure, V is the volume, n is the number of moles of gas, R is the ideal gas constant, and T is the temperature.
Since the reaction occurs at STP (Standard Temperature and Pressure), which is 1 atm pressure and 273.15 Kelvin temperature, we can simplify the equation to V = nRT/P.
Let’s calculate the initial and final volumes:
Initial volume (Vi) of the reactants:
Using the given information, we have 5 moles of gaseous reactants. Assuming all reactants are gases and occupy equal volumes, we can say that their initial volume is 5V, where V is the molar volume of an ideal gas at STP, which is approximately 22.4 liters/mol.
Vi = 5V = 5 * 22.4 L/mol = 112 L
Final volume (Vf) of the products:
From the reaction information, we have 2 moles of gaseous products. Assuming all products are gases and occupy equal volumes, their final volume is 2V.
Vf = 2V = 2 * 22.4 L/mol = 44.8 L
Overall change in volume:
The overall change in volume (∆V) of the system is the difference between the final volume and the initial volume.
∆V = Vf - Vi = 44.8 L - 112 L = -67.2 L
Therefore, the overall change in volume of the system is -67.2 liters. The negative sign indicates a decrease in volume.