Final answer:
The limiting reagent when 1.0 g of acetic acid is combined with 2.0 g of ethanol in the esterification reaction is acetic acid, as there are fewer moles of acetic acid than ethanol.
Step-by-step explanation:
To determine which compound is the limiting reagent when 1.0 g of acetic acid (C2H4O2) is combined with 2.0 g of ethanol (C2H6O) in an esterification reaction, we first need to calculate the number of moles of each reactant. The molar mass of acetic acid is 60.05 g/mol, and for ethanol, it is 46.07 g/mol.
Calculating the moles for each reactant:
Since the reaction has a 1:1 molar ratio between acetic acid and ethanol, and there are fewer moles of acetic acid than ethanol, acetic acid is the limiting reagent. Thus, ethanol is in excess