What volume of propane consumes one litre of oxygen during its complete combustion?

1 Answer
Ernest Z.
May 2, 2017

0.2 L of propane is required for every litre of oxygen consumed.

Explanation:

The balanced equation is

#color(white)(mmmmmm)"C"_3"H"_8 + "5O"_2 → "3CO"_2 + "4H"_2"O"#
#"Vol. ratio:"color(white)(mll)"1 L"color(white)(mm)"5 L"color(white)(mmll)"3 L"color(white)(mmll)"4 L"#

According to Gay-Lussac's Law of Combining volumes, the ratios of the volumes are the same as the ratios of the molecules (the coefficients in the balanced equation).

Hence

#"Vol. of C"_3"H"_8 = 1 color(red)(cancel(color(black)("L O"_2))) × ("1 L C"_3"H"_8)/(5 color(red)(cancel(color(black)("L O"_2)))) = "0.2 L C"_3"H"_8#

∴ 0.2 L of propane is required for every litre of oxygen consumed.

Related questions
See all questions in Gas Stoichiometry
Impact of this question
2139 views around the world
You can reuse this answer
Creative Commons License