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Ch.5 - Thermochemistry
Chapter 5, Problem 81d

Ethanol (C2H5OH) is blended with gasoline as an automobile fuel. (d) Calculate the mass of CO2 produced per kJ of heat emitted.

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Key Concepts

Here are the essential concepts you must grasp in order to answer the question correctly.

Combustion Reaction

A combustion reaction is a chemical process in which a substance (usually a hydrocarbon) reacts with oxygen to produce carbon dioxide and water, releasing energy in the form of heat. In the case of ethanol, the reaction can be represented as C2H5OH + 3O2 → 2CO2 + 3H2O, illustrating how ethanol combusts to produce CO2 and H2O.
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Stoichiometry

Stoichiometry is the calculation of reactants and products in chemical reactions based on the balanced chemical equation. It allows us to determine the amount of CO2 produced from a given amount of ethanol burned, using mole ratios derived from the balanced equation to convert between moles of ethanol and moles of CO2.
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Energy Release in Combustion

The energy released during combustion is typically measured in kilojoules (kJ) and is derived from the breaking and forming of chemical bonds. The heat emitted per mole of ethanol can be calculated using its enthalpy of combustion, which indicates how much energy is released when a specific amount of ethanol is burned, allowing for the calculation of CO2 produced per kJ of heat.
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