School of Chemistry
Fundamentals of Chemistry 1A
(CHEM1011)
Tutorial 5 (Week 5): Yields
Model 1: Mole Concept
Avogadro’s number is not just a random large number. It is the number of atoms in exactly 12 g of
pure carbon-12, so: 1 mol of carbon-12 has a mass of 12 g, and contains 6.022 × 1023 atoms. The
molar mass (symbol M) is the mass of 1 mol of objects - it has units of g mol-1 (pronounced “grams
per mole”). The relationship between the mass, the number of moles and the molar mass is:
mass (𝑚𝑚) 𝑚𝑚
number of moles (𝑛𝑛) = molar mass (𝑀𝑀)
or 𝑛𝑛 = 𝑀𝑀
1. What is the molar mass of carbon-12?
12.011 g/mol
2. How many moles are there in 36 g of carbon-12?
n = 36g / 12.011 g/mol = 2.997mol
3. The equation above gives a formula for calculating the number of moles (n) from the mass
(m) and the molar mass (M). Write down a formula for calculating:
(a) The mass (m) from the number of moles (n) and the molar mass (M)
m=nxM
(b) The molar mass (M) from the number of moles (n) and the mass (m)
M = m/n
The molar mass of a compound is the sum of the mass numbers of the atoms in its formula:
• For H2O, M = [2 × 1.008 (H) + 16.00 (O)] g mol-1 = 18.02 g mol-1
• For C6H12O, M = [6 × 12.01 (C) + 12 × 1.008 (H) + 1 × 16.00 (O)] g mol-1 = 100.16 g mol1
4. Calculate the molar mass of the following:
(a) calcium chloride
40.078 + 35.54 x 2 = 110.978 g/mol
(b) molecule “x”:
H
N O
H C
H N N
O H
H N C
C C H
C C C N
H H
C C
H C Cl C10 H10 N5 O2 Cl
= 225.652 g/mol
H
5. Calculate the number of moles in each of the following:
(a) 25 g of calcium chloride
n = 25 g / 110.978 g/mol = 0.23 mol
(b) 200.0 g of molecule “x”
n = 200.0 g / 225.652 g/mol = 0.89 mol
6. Calculate the mass of the following:
(a) 15 mol of iron
15 mol = g / 55.845 g/mol = 838 g
(b) 0.65 mol of molecule “x”
0.65 mol = g / 225.652 g/mol = 147 g
Model 2: Limiting reagents – The Ice Cream Sundae Case
A perfect ice cream sundae requires exactly:
• 3 scoops of ice cream • 1 spoon of peanuts
• 2 squirts of chocolate sauce • 1 cherry
If you have 7 scoops of ice cream, 3 spoons of peanuts, 5 cherries and 11 squirts of sauce, you
can only make 2 complete sundaes. In this case, the icecream is the limiting reagent.
If you have a truckload of icecream, a bucket of sauce, a box of peanuts but only 1 cherry, you can
only make 1 complete sundae. In this case the cherry is the limiting reagent.
The limiting reagent is the term given to the ingredient (read: reactant) that has the
(stoichiometrically) least amount. The other reactants are said to be in excess. In a reaction the
limiting reagent will be totally consumed, and some of the reactant in excess will be leftover.
7. If you have 20 scoops of ice cream, 14 squirts of chocolate sauce, 5 spoons of peanuts and
7 cherries, how many sundaes can you make and which ingredient is the limiting reagent?
5 sundaes. The limiting reagent is the spoons of peanuts.
8. For the reaction, FeCl2(s) + 2AgNO3(s) 2AgCl(s) + Fe(NO3)2(s)
(a) What is the required molar ratio between FeCl2 and AgNO3? (Hint: how do these
numbers relate to the stoichiometric coefficients?)
1:2
Next, for the same reaction, identify the limiting reagent and calculate the number of moles
of AgCl(s) and Fe(NO3)2(s) that will be obtained when the following are reacted:
(b) 3 mol of FeCl2(s) and 4 mol of AgNO3(s).
AgNO3 is the limiting reagent. 4AgCl and 2Fe(NO3)2
(c) 0.50 mol of FeCl2(s) and 1.5 mol of AgNO3(s).
FeCl2 is the limiting reagent. 1ACl and 0.5Fe(NO3)2
(d) 0.078 mol of FeCl2(s) and 0.155 mol of AgNO3(s).
AgNO3 is the limiting reagent. 0.155ACl and 0.0775Fe(NO3)2
For the same reaction, identify the limiting reagent and calculate the mass of AgCl(s) and
Fe(NO3)2(s) that will be obtained when the following are reacted. (Hint: you need to convert
mass (g) to moles at the start and moles to mass (g) at the end of these longer calculations
and may find it easier to use a table)
(e) 72.0 mg of FeCl2(s) and 300. mg of AgNO3(s) are present
FeCl2(s) AgNO3(s) AgCl(s) Fe(NO3)2(s)
mass (g) 0.072 0.3 0.163 0.102
number of moles (mol) 0.00056806974 0.00177 0.00114 0.000568
limiting reagent limiting reagent
Model 3: Theoretical and percentage yields
Before performing a reaction, chemists want to know how much product (by mass) can
theoretically be made from the reactants. This amount is called the theoretical yield.
9. The chemical equation for the combustion of methane is CH4(g) + 2O2(g) CO2(g) +
2H2O(l).
(a) If the reaction is carried out in a kitchen where there is plenty of air, which species is
the limiting reagent?
Methane
(b) How many moles of CH4(g) are there in 4.0 g?
0.25 mol
(c) How many moles of CO2(g) will be obtained if 4.0 g of CH4 are burnt?
0.25 mol
(d) What is the theoretical yield of CO2(g) in grams?
11 g
(e) If 12 g of CO2(g) is required, how much CH4(g) must be burnt?
4.4 g
10. For most reactions in the laboratory (or in nature), the final yield of product is less than the
theoretical yield. Why do you think this might be the case?
Chemists generally calculate the percentage yield of a reaction:
Actual Yield (g)
Percentage yield = Theoretical Yield (g)
× 100 %
The actual yield is the weighed amount of dried product.
11. The combustion of CH4(g) is carried out with a portable burner which is suspected of
leaking fuel. When 4.0 g of CH4(g) is used, only 9.5 g of CO2(g) is obtained.
(a) What is the percentage yield? (Hint: use the theoretical yield you calculated in Q9(c)
above).
(b) How much CH4(g) did not burn?
Challenge question:
With the percentage yield you calculated in Q11(a), how much of each of the reactants is required
to produce an actual yield of 17 g of CO2(g)?