Question

Lighter fluid is essentially butane, C 4 H 10 . Butane burns to produce carbon

dioxide gas and water vapour. If 2.50 g of butane are burned, what volume

of carbon dioxide at 47°C and 105 kPa will be produced?

Answer 1

The balanced chemical reaction is:

C4H10 + 5O2 = 4CO2 + 2H2O

We are given the amount of butane to be used in the reaction. This will be the starting point of the calculations.

2.50 g C4H10 ( 1 mol C4H10 / 58.14 g C4H10) ( 4 mol CO2 / 1 mol C4H10 ) = 0.21 mol CO2

V = nRT / P = 0.21 mol CO2 (0.08206 atm L/mol K) 320.15 K / 1.04 atm = 5.30 L CO2