Final answer:
The limiting reagent is oxygen in the reaction between hydrogen and oxygen. The amount of oxygen will determine the maximum amount of product that can be formed.
Step-by-step explanation:
The limiting reagent is the reactant that will be completely consumed first and determines the maximum amount of product that can be formed. To determine the limiting reagent, we need to compare the amount of each reactant to their respective molar masses and calculate the moles of each reactant.
Given that 16.0 g of hydrogen and 32.0 g of oxygen are provided, we can calculate the number of moles for each reactant. The molar mass of hydrogen is 2.02 g/mol, so 16.0 g of hydrogen is equal to 16.0 g / 2.02 g/mol = 7.92 mol. The molar mass of oxygen is 32.0 g/mol, so 32.0 g of oxygen is equal to 32.0 g / 32.0 g/mol = 1.00 mol.
Since the stoichiometry of the balanced equation is in a 2:1 ratio of hydrogen to oxygen, we can see that there is an excess of hydrogen. Therefore, oxygen is the limiting reagent. The amount of oxygen will determine the maximum amount of product that can be formed.