Worksheet

Lesson: Gas Calculations

1. How much hydrogen?

1.1 A container contains 3.40 g ammonia (NH3) gas.

a. How many moles of ammonia molecules are there?

b. How many moles of hydrogen atoms are there?
c. What volume does this amount of ammonia gas occupy at room temperature and
pressure?

1.2 A sample of water weighs 1.00 g.

a. How many moles of water are there in 1.00 g of water?

b. What volume (in cm3 ) of water vapour will this be at r.t.p?
c. How many times larger is the volume of 1.00 g of water vapour at r.t.p than 1.00 g of the liquid?
d. Calculate the percentage of the volume of the vapour at r.t.p that the water molecules themselves
occupy. (Assume that in liquid water the molecules are all in contact.)

1.3 A classroom has dimensions 2.5 m x 3.0 m x 5.0 m..

a. Work out its volume in m3 and then convert this to dm3.

b. Assuming the room is filled with nitrogen instead of air (the density will be much the
same), calculate the number of moles of nitrogen gas to fill the room at r.t.p.
c. Calculate the mass of this amount of nitrogen gas.

1.4 When each of the following gases is completely burnt in air, the amount of energy released
is as follows:

H2: 286 kJ mol-1 CH4: 890 kJ mol-1 C4H10: 2877 kJ mol-1

a. If used to power a rocket engine, which fuel would release the most energy per litre
(dm3) of gas at r.t.p?
b. Which fuel would release the most energy per gram of fuel used?
c. Therefore, which fuel would you choose for energy reasons alone to power a rocket?
Give your reason.

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 1.5 A sample of methane gas will have a volume of 1.5 dm3 at standard temperature and pressure (s.t.p).

a. How will its volume change if it is measured at 10 °C and 1 atm pressure?

b. How will its volume change if it is measured at 0 °C and 2 atm pressure?
c. How will its volume change if it is measured at r.t.p.?
d. How will its mass change if it is measured at r.t.p?

2. Avogadro’s Law

2.1 Which of the following would have the greatest volume at s.t.p? Explain your answer.

(A) 1.0 g of ethane (C2H6)

(B) 2.0 g of fluorine (F2)
(C) 3.0 g of sulphur dioxide (SO2)

3. Molar mass from molar volume.

3.1 Two hydrocarbons, A and B, have the same empirical formula, CH. A is a gas at room
temperature, whereas B is a volatile liquid.

a. The mass of 140 cm3 of gas A measured at r.t.p. is 0.150 g. Find the relative molecular
mass of A and hence its molecular formula.
b. 0.300 g of B produces 92 cm3 of vapour measured at r.t.p. Find the relative molecular mass
of B and hence its molecular formula.

3.2 A volatile organic liquid containing C, H and O has a boiling point of 21°C. A volume of 0.700 cm3
of this liquid (density = 0.78 g cm-3) vaporises to produce 298 cm3 of vapour measured at r.t.p.
Find its molecular mass and suggest a formula (the molecule contains only 1 oxygen atom).

4. How much gas?

4.1 When lead(II) nitrate, Pb(NO3)2 is heated, it decomposes to lead(II) oxide, nitrogen dioxide and
oxygen gas:

2Pb(NO3)2 (s) -> 2PbO(s) + 4NO2(g) + O2(g)

Calculate the total volume of gas (measured at s.t.p.) produced when 1.00 g of lead(II) nitrate
is heated until no further decomposition occurs.

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 4.2 Baking soda (sodium hydrogencarbonate, NaHCO3) is sometimes used to make cakes and
bread rise. This happens due to the carbon dioxide gas given off on heating:

2NaHCO3(s) -> Na2CO3(s) + CO2(g) + H2O(l)

Assuming the volume or gas needed to allow a typical cake or bread mixture to rise in volume
is 1.00 dm3 measured at r.t.p, calculate the mass of baking soda needed assuming it all
decomposes.

4.3 Hydrogen sulphide (H2S) and sulphur dioxide (SO2) mixed in the correct proportions react to
form sulphur and water vapour. In a reaction, 0.480 g of solid sulphur and 240 cm3 of water
vapour (measured at r.t.p.) are formed.

a. Write the balanced equation for the reaction.

b. Find :
i. the volume and number of moles of hydrogen sulphide used.
ii. the number of moles of sulphur formed.
iii. the moles of sulphur dioxide used.
iv. the volume of sulphur dioxide used.

4.4 Octane (C8H18) is a component of petrol. Assuming a fuel to be pure octane, complete
combustion in a car engine would occur according to the following reaction:

C8H18(l) + 12.5O2(g) -> 8CO2(g) + 9H2O(l)

a. Assuming a car’s petrol consumption is 10 miles/litre, calculate the mass, and hence
the moles, of octane consumed in a 10-mile journey (density of octane = 0.700 g cm-3).

b. Use your answer to (a) to calculate the volume of oxygen (measured at r.t.p.) that would
be needed to allow complete combustion of this amount of fuel.

c. As air consists mainly of nitrogen and oxygen molecules in an approximately 4:1 ratio,
calculate the volume of air that the car engine would need for complete combustion of
the octane fuel on a 10-mile journey.

5. Reacting volumes of gases.

5.1 40 cm3 of a gaseous hydrocarbon, CxHy, was mixed with an excess of oxygen (100 cm3)
and exploded. The final volume of the gases present at r.t.p (oxygen and carbon dioxide) at the
end of the reaction was 60 cm3. If this mixture of gases was shaken with a little sodium hydroxide
solution, the volume reduced to 20 cm3. Use this information to find the formula of the hydrocarbon.

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