Question

Phosphorous burns in air to produce a phosphorus oxide in the following reaction. What moles of phosphorus will be needed to produce 3.25 mol of P₄O₁₀ ?

4P(s) + 5O₂(g) ----> P₄O₁₀(s)

Answer 1

To produce 3.25 moles of phosphorus(V) oxide (P₄O₁₀), 13 moles of phosphorus will be needed, based on the stoichiometry of the balanced chemical equation.

Step-by-step explanation:

The reaction between phosphorus and oxygen to produce phosphorus(V) oxide is shown by the equation:

4P(s) + 5O2(g) → P4O10(s)

This balanced chemical equation tells us that 4 moles of phosphorus (P) react with 5 moles of oxygen (O2) to produce 1 mole of phosphorus(V) oxide (P4O10). To calculate the moles of phosphorus required to produce 3.25 moles of P4O10, we apply the stoichiometry of the reaction. Since the molar ratio of P to P4O10 is 4:1, we multiply the moles of P4O10 by the ratio of P to P4O10.

3.25 moles P4O10 x (4 moles P / 1 mole P4O10) = 13 moles P

Therefore, 13 moles of phosphorus will be needed to produce 3.25 moles of P4O10.