Question

A chemical company makes pure silver by reacting silver nitrate with zinc. The company needs to make 500 grams of pure silver for a client. They have 300 grams of zinc and 600 grams of silver nitrate. Will they be able to make enough silver to fill the order using the balanced chemical equation:

Zn + 2_AgNO_3 -> Zn(NO_3)^2 + 2Ag
Which option correctly describes the situation?
A) Yes.
B) No.

Answer 1

After performing the stoichiometric calculation, the chemical company can produce 990.24 grams of silver, which exceeds the required 500 grams. Therefore, the company can fulfill the order.

Step-by-step explanation:

To determine if the chemical company can make 500 grams of pure silver using the provided reactants and the balanced chemical equation (Zn + 2AgNO3 → Zn(NO3)2 + 2Ag), we need to perform a stoichiometric calculation. First, calculate the moles of each reactant:

For zinc (Zn), with an atomic mass of about 65.38 g/mol: (300 g of Zn)/(65.38 g/mol) = 4.59 mol of Zn.For silver nitrate (AgNO3), with a molar mass of about 169.87 g/mol: (600 g of AgNO3)/(169.87 g/mol) = 3.53 mol of AgNO3.

According to the equation, 2 moles of AgNO3 react with 1 mole of Zn to produce 2 moles of Ag. Therefore, Zn is the limiting reactant since it produces fewer moles of silver. The amount of silver that can be produced is twice the moles of Zn: (4.59 mol Zn) × (2 mol Ag / 1 mol Zn) = 9.18 mol Ag.

Now, calculate the mass of silver that 9.18 mol corresponds to, using the atomic mass of silver which is approximately 107.87 g/mol: (9.18 mol Ag) × (107.87 g/mol) = 990.24 g of Ag.

Since 990.24 g of silver is greater than the required 500 grams, the company can fulfill the order. Therefore, the correct answer is:

A) Yes.