Use this reaction to answer the question.CH3COOH → CO2 + CH4Use the table of molar masses to complete the activity.Element Molar Mass (g/mol)carbon 12.01hydrogen 1.01oxygen 16.00A chemist will use a sample of 45 g of ethanol (CH3CH2OH) in an experiment.How many moles of ethanol will the chemist use? Show your work WITH units. 

1 answer

To find the number of moles of ethanol (CH₃CH₂OH) in a sample weighing 45 g, we first need to calculate the molar mass of ethanol.

Step 1: Calculate the molar mass of ethanol (CH₃CH₂OH)

The molar mass of ethanol can be calculated by adding up the molar masses of all the atoms in the formula:

  • Carbon (C): 2 atoms × 12.01 g/mol = 24.02 g/mol
  • Hydrogen (H): 6 atoms × 1.01 g/mol = 6.06 g/mol (since there are 5 from CH₃CH₂ and 1 from OH)
  • Oxygen (O): 1 atom × 16.00 g/mol = 16.00 g/mol

Now, add them all together:

\[ \text{Molar mass of CH₃CH₂OH} = 24.02 , \text{g/mol} + 6.06 , \text{g/mol} + 16.00 , \text{g/mol} = 46.08 , \text{g/mol} \]

Step 2: Calculate the number of moles of ethanol

To find the number of moles, we use the formula:

\[ \text{Number of moles} = \frac{\text{mass (g)}}{\text{molar mass (g/mol)}} \]

Now substituting the values:

\[ \text{Number of moles} = \frac{45 , \text{g}}{46.08 , \text{g/mol}} \]

Calculating this gives:

\[ \text{Number of moles} \approx 0.975 , \text{mol} \]

Final Answer:

The chemist will use approximately 0.975 moles of ethanol.