Magnesium (Mg) is a valuable metal used in alloys, in batteries, and in chemical synthesis. It is obtained mostly from seawater, which contains about 1.3 g of Mg for every kilog…

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asked Mar 2, 2023 222k views

1 Answer

Servik · Answer 1 · 2023-03-07T20:55:09+0000

The first step we have to follow is to convert the given tons to grams:

$8.0*10^4tons\cdot\frac{1000\operatorname{kg}}{1ton}\cdot\frac{1000g}{1\operatorname{kg}}=8*10^(10)g$

Use the given ratio of grams of Mg to kg of seawater to find how much of seawater is needed:

$8*10^(10)gMg\cdot(1kgseawater)/(1.3gMg)=6.15*10^(10)kgseawater$

Use the density of seawater to find how many liters are needed:

$6.15*10^(10)\operatorname{kg}\cdot\frac{1000g}{1\operatorname{kg}}\cdot(1ml)/(1.03g)\cdot(1l)/(1000ml)=5.97*10^(10)l$

5.97x10^10 liters are needed to extract that amount of Mg.