Question

Consider a reaction with a half-life of 20 minutes. If the amount of material remaining after 2 hours is 5 0 g 50 g, how much material was present at the start? ans in grams

Answers

GPT 3.5
To calculate the amount of material present at the start, we need to determine how many half-lives occurred during the 2-hour time period.

1 half-life = 20 minutes or 20/60 = 1/3 hours

2 hours = 2 x 60 minutes = 120 minutes = 4 half-lives

If the amount remaining after 4 half-lives is 50 grams, the initial amount present can be calculated using the formula:

Amount = Initial Amount x (1/2)^(number of half-lives)

50 = Initial Amount x (1/2)^4

50 = Initial Amount x (1/16)

Initial Amount = 50 x 16 = 800 grams

Therefore, the amount of material present at the start was 800 grams.