Answer:
78 grams of sodium sulfide should be formed
Step-by-step explanation:
The balanced chemical equation for the reaction between sodium and sulfur is:
2 Na + S → Na2S
According to the equation, 2 moles of sodium react with 1 mole of sulfur to produce 1 mole of sodium sulfide. The molar mass of sodium is approximately 23 g/mol and the molar mass of sulfur is approximately 32 g/mol.
We need to determine which reactant is limiting and which is in excess in order to calculate the amount of sodium sulfide produced.
Using the given masses, we can calculate the number of moles of each reactant:
moles of sodium = 23 g / 23 g/mol = 1 mol
moles of sulfur = 32 g / 32 g/mol = 1 mol
From this calculation, we can see that both reactants are present in the stoichiometric ratio required by the balanced equation, so neither is limiting.
Therefore, the amount of sodium sulfide formed will be based on the amount of either reactant, which is 1 mole. Using the molar mass of sodium sulfide (78 g/mol), we can calculate the mass of sodium sulfide formed:
mass of Na2S = 1 mol x 78 g/mol = 78 g
Therefore, when 23 grams of sodium react with 32 grams of sulfur, a total of 78 grams of sodium sulfide should be formed.