Final answer:
During fermentation in an open container, the mass of the container and contents decreases as carbon dioxide escapes. From 200.0 g of glucose, the total mass of ethanol and carbon dioxide remains 200.0 g. With 97.7 g of carbon dioxide released, 102.3 g of ethanol is produced.
Step-by-step explanation:
The process of fermentation involves the conversion of glucose to ethanol and carbon dioxide. When considering the mass of a closed system, such as a fermentor, and its contents before and after fermentation, we need to apply the law of conservation of matter.
(a) If 200.0 g of glucose is fully converted, the total mass of ethanol and carbon dioxide produced will still be 200.0 g because of the conservation of mass. However, as we will see, this does not necessarily mean that the detectable mass of the container will remain the same.
(b) If the fermentation is carried out in an open container, we would expect the mass of the container and contents after fermentation to be less than before fermentation. This is because carbon dioxide, being a gas, will escape from the open container, thus decreasing the total mass that we can measure.
(c) If 97.7 g of carbon dioxide is produced during fermentation, then the mass of ethanol produced will be the initial mass of glucose minus the mass of carbon dioxide, which equates to 200.0 g - 97.7 g = 102.3 g of ethanol.