In a closed vessel, 16 g of methane ( CH₄ ) is ignited with 32 g of oxygen gas ( O₂ ). The mass of carbon dioxide ( CO₂ ) formed upon complete reaction is (Given: atomic mass in amu H =1 , C =12 and O =16 )

Step-by-step solution

The balanced chemical equation for the combustion of methane is: CH₄ + 2O₂ CO₂ + 2H₂O Molar mass of CH₄ = 12 + 4 1 = 16 g/mol Number of moles of CH₄ initially present = 16 16 = 1 mol Molar mass of O₂ = 2 16 = 32 g/mol Number of moles of O₂ initially present = 32 32 = 1 mol From the balanced equation, 1 mole of CH₄ requires 2 moles of O₂ for complete combustion. Since only 1 mole of O₂ is available, O₂ is the limiting reagent. The amount of product formed is determined by the limiting reagent. According to the stoic