Stoichiometry: Calculations
with Chemical Formulas and
Equations
Ahmad F Samin,PhD
Chemical Equations
Concise representations of chemical reactions:
Anatomy of a Chemical Equation
CH4 (g) + 2 O2 (g)
CO2 (g) + 2 H2O (g)
Anatomy of a Chemical Equation
CH4 (g) + 2 O2 (g)
Reactants appear on the left side of
the equation.
CO2 (g) + 2 H2O (g)
Anatomy of a Chemical Equation
CH4 (g) + 2 O2 (g)
CO2 (g) + 2 H2O (g)
Products appear on the right side of
the equation.
Anatomy of a Chemical Equation
CH4 (g) + 2 O2 (g)
CO2 (g) + 2 H2O (g)
The states of the reactants and products are written in
parentheses to the right of each compound.
Anatomy of a Chemical Equation
CH4 (g) + 2 O2 (g)
Coefficients are inserted to balance
the equation.
CO2 (g) + 2 H2O (g)
Subscripts and Coefficients Give Different
Information
Subscripts tell the number of atoms of each element in
a molecule.
Subscripts and Coefficients Give Different
Information
Subscripts tell the number of atoms of each element in
a molecule.
Coefficients tell the number of molecules.
Reaction Types
Combination Reactions
Examples:
N2 (g) + 3 H2 (g) 2 NH3 (g)
C3H6 (g) + Br2 (l) C3H6Br2 (l)
2 Mg (s) + O2 (g) 2 MgO (s)
Two or more
substances react to
form one product.
2 Mg (s) + O2 (g) 2 MgO (s)
Decomposition Reactions
Examples:
CaCO3 (s) CaO (s) + CO2 (g)
2 KClO3 (s) 2 KCl (s) + O2 (g)
2 NaN3 (s) 2 Na (s) + 3 N2 (g)
One substance breaks down
into two or more substances.
Combustion Reactions
Rapid reactions that produce
a flame.
Most often involve
hydrocarbons reacting with
oxygen in the air.
Examples:
CH4 (g) + 2 O2 (g) CO2 (g) + 2 H2O (g)
C3H8 (g) + 5 O2 (g) 3 CO2 (g) + 4 H2O (g)
Formula Weights
Formula Weight (FW)
Sum of the atomic weights for the atoms in a
chemical formula.
So, the formula weight of calcium chloride, CaCl2,
would be:
Ca: 1(40.1 amu)
+ Cl: 2(35.5 amu)
111.1 amu
amu= g/moles
These are generally reported for ionic compounds.
Molecular Weight (MW)
Sum of the atomic weights of the atoms in a
molecule.
For the molecule ethane, C2H6, the molecular weight
would be:
C: 2(12.0 amu)
+ H: 6(1.0 amu)
30.0 amu
Percent Composition
One can find the percentage of the mass of a
compound that comes from each of the elements in
the compound by using this equation:
% element =
(number of atoms)(atomic weight)
(FW of the compound)
x 100
Percent Composition
So the percentage of carbon in ethane is
%C =
(2)(12.0 amu)
(30.0 amu)
24.0 amu
x 100
=
30.0 amu
= 80.0%
Moles
Avogadros Number
6.02 x 1023
1 mole of 12C has a mass of 12 g
Molar Mass
By definition, these are the mass of 1 mol of a
substance (i.e., g/mol):
The molar mass of an element is the mass
number for the element that we find on the
periodic table.
The formula weight (in amus) will be the same
number as the molar mass (in g/mol).
Using Moles
Moles provide a bridge from the molecular scale to the real-world
scale.
Mole Relationships
One mole of atoms, ions, or molecules contains Avogadros number of
those particles.
One mole of molecules or formula units contains Avogadros number
times the number of atoms or ions of each element in the compound.
Finding Empirical Formulas
Calculating Empirical Formulas
One can calculate the empirical formula from the percent
composition.
Calculating Empirical Formulas
The compound para-aminobenzoic acid (you may have
seen it listed as PABA on your bottle of sunscreen) is
composed of carbon (61.31%), hydrogen (5.14%),
nitrogen (10.21%), and oxygen (23.33%). Find the
empirical formula of PABA.
Calculating Empirical Formulas
Assuming 100.00 g of para-aminobenzoic acid,
C:
H:
N:
O:
1 mol
12.01 g
1 mol
5.14 g x
1.01 g
1 mol
10.21 g x
14.01 g
1 mol
23.33 g x
16.00 g
61.31 g x
= 5.105 mol C
= 5.09 mol H
= 0.7288 mol N
= 1.456 mol O
Calculating Empirical Formulas
Calculate the mole ratio by dividing by the smallest number
of moles:
C:
5.105 mol
0.7288 mol
= 7.005 ~ 7
H:
5.09 mol
0.7288 mol
= 6.984 ~ 7
N:
0.7288 mol
0.7288 mol
= 1.000
O:
1.458 mol
0.7288 mol
= 2.001 ~ 2
Calculating Empirical Formulas
These are the subscripts for the empirical formula:
C7H7NO2
Combustion Analysis
Compounds containing C, H and O are routinely analyzed through
combustion in a chamber like this:
C is determined from the mass of CO2 produced;
H is determined from the mass of H2O produced;
O is determined by difference after the C and H have been determined.
Elemental Analyses
Compounds containing
other elements are
analyzed using methods
analogous to those used for
C, H and O
Stoichiometric Calculations
The coefficients in the balanced equation give the ratio of moles of
reactants and products
Stoichiometric Calculations
From the mass of Substance A
you can use the ratio of the
coefficients of A and B to
calculate the mass of
Substance B formed (if its a
product) or used (if its a
reactant).
Stoichiometric Calculations
C6H12O6 + 6 O2 6 CO2 + 6 H2O
Starting with 1.00 g of C6H12O6
we calculate the moles of C6H12O6
use the coefficients to find the moles of H2O
and then turn the moles of water to grams.
Limiting Reactants
Limiting Reactants
The limiting reactant is
the reactant present in
the smallest
stoichiometric amount.
Limiting Reactants
The limiting reactant is the reactant present in the
smallest stoichiometric amount:
In other words, its the reactant youll run out of first (in
this case, the H2).
Limiting Reactants
In the example below, the O2 would be the excess
reagent.