Question

A single Alka-Seltzer tablet has a mass of 3.241 g and is 30.855% citric acid. The tablet contains an excess of sodium bicarbonate which reacts with the acid upon addition of water according to the following UNBALANCED reaction. How much carbon dioxide is produced by one Alka-Seltzer tablet?

A) 0.463 g
B) 0.927 g
C) 0.774 g
D) 1.548 g

Answer 1

To find the amount of carbon dioxide produced by one Alka-Seltzer tablet, we need to calculate the amount of citric acid in the tablet and then convert it to the amount of CO2 using the balanced equation for the reaction. The tablet has a mass of 3.241 g and is 30.855% citric acid. Therefore, the mass of citric acid in the tablet is 0.9988 g. From the balanced equation, we can calculate that the amount of carbon dioxide produced is 10.834 g.

Step-by-step explanation:

To find the amount of carbon dioxide produced by one Alka-Seltzer tablet, we need to calculate the amount of citric acid in the tablet and then convert it to the amount of CO2 using the balanced equation for the reaction. The tablet has a mass of 3.241 g and is 30.855% citric acid. Therefore, the mass of citric acid in the tablet is 3.241 g * 30.855% = 0.9988 g.

The balanced equation for the reaction is:
2 NaHCO3(s) → Na2CO3(s) + CO2(g) + H2O(l)

From the equation, we can see that 2 moles of NaHCO3 produce 1 mole of CO2. The molar mass of NaHCO3 is 84.007 g/mol. So, the molar mass of CO2 is 44.01 g/mol. Using this information, we can calculate the amount of CO2 produced:

0.9988 g citric acid * (1 mol CO2 / 2 mol NaHCO3) * (44.01 g CO2 / 1 mol CO2) = 10.834 g CO2

Therefore, the amount of carbon dioxide produced by one Alka-Seltzer tablet is 10.834 g.