# Question 090a5

Apr 24, 2016

I don't think it can.

#### Explanation:

Since this is combustion, there must also by oxygen present which will contribute to the mass of the reactants.

However, if you consider the simplest organic compound, methane, combusting:
$C {H}_{4} + 2 {O}_{2} \to C {O}_{2} + 2 {H}_{2} O$

The Relative Formula masses are:
$\left(16\right) \text{methane"+(2times32) "oxygen} \to 44 \left(C {O}_{2}\right) + \left(2 \times 18\right) w a t e r$

The increase in mass of products (80) to reactant (excluding oxygen) is a factor of 5.

The question requires a substance that gives this ratio to be
$\frac{3 + 1.5}{7.5 \times {10}^{-} 3} = 600$
i.e. an increase in mass of a factor of 600.

This is not possible. If you consider the oxidation of individual atoms:
$4 H + {O}_{2} \to 2 {H}_{2} O$, the ratio by mass of water products to hydrogen reactants is 9.
For C+O_2"toCO_2#, the ratio by mass of $C {O}_{2}$ products to carbon reactants is 3.7.

Hence we cannot get to a ratio of 600.