What would be the limiting reagent if 26.0 grams of C3H9N were reacted with 46.3 grams of O2? 4C3H9N+25O2=>12CO2+18H2O+4NO2

1 Answer
Jun 18, 2014

The limiting reactant would be O₂.

The balanced equation for the reaction is

4C₃H₉N + 25O₂ →12CO₂ + 18H₂O + 4NO₂

To determine the limiting reactant, we calculate the amount of product that can be formed from each of the reactants. Whichever reactant gives the smaller amount of product is the limiting reactant.

Let's use CO₂ as the product.

From C₃H₉N:

26.0 g C₃H₉N × 1mol CHN59.11g CHN×12mol CO4mol CHN = 1.32 mol CO₂

From O₂:

46.3 g O₂ × 1mol O32.00g O×12mol CO25mol O = 0.694 mol CO₂

The O₂ gives the smaller amount of CO₂, so the O₂ is the limiting reactant.

Hope this helps.