Question

What mass of carbon dioxide is produced by the reduction of `Fe_2O_3` by carbon monoxide?

Answer 1

We suppose that there is a `100` `g` mass of ferric oxide.

Explanation:

`Fe_2O_3(s) + 3CO(g) + Delta rarr 2Fe(l) + 3CO_2(g)uarr`

For each mole of ferric oxide, 3 moles of carbon dioxide are produced.

So `"Moles of ferric oxide" = (100*g)/(159.69*g*mol^-1)` `=` `0.626` `mol`.

And thus `1.88` `mol` of carbon dioxide gas are evolved, with a mass of `1.88` `mol` `xx` `44.01` `g*mol^-1` `=` `??` `g`.

I add that if you ever get the chance to visit an iron foundry, don't miss out. A blast furnace is an amazing thing, and you feel very small in such an environment. The reaction above is one that underpins our civilization. Iron foundries currently process some 2500 million tonnes of haematite ore per year. These amounts are staggering.