Question detail
A 5.00 g sample of butane (C₄H₁₀) is completely combusted. How many moles of carbon atoms are released in the reaction?
Try the question, check the answer, then read the explanation to understand the curriculum point.
At a glance
Question
Type
exam_style
Style
Topic
Carbon compounds as fuels and feedstock
Question
A 5.00 g sample of butane (C₄H₁₀) is completely combusted. How many moles of carbon atoms are released in the reaction?
Answer
The combustion releases 5.00 mol of carbon atoms. This is calculated by first finding 0.113 mol of butane and then multiplying by 4 carbon atoms per molecule.
Explanation
This question tests the student’s ability to combine the moles‑from‑mass calculation with stoichiometric reasoning about the number of atoms per molecule, a common requirement in organic chemistry problems.
Common mistake
Mislabeling displayed formula as molecular formula
Students often write the same line‑bond diagram (displayed formula) and then state it as the molecular formula, forgetting that the molecular formula is a concise representation of the element counts, e.g. C₄H₁₀ for butane.
Explain that the displayed formula shows the connectivity of atoms, while the molecular formula lists the number of each element in the molecule. For butane, the displayed formula is CH₃–CH₂–CH₂–CH₃, the structural formula is the same with explicit bonds, and the molecular formula is C₄H₁₀.
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