Reaction Rate and Stoichiometry

Question

For the decomposition of nitrous oxide at 565 °C

2 N₂O2 N₂ + O₂

the average rate of disappearance of N₂O over the time period from t = 0 s to t = 633 s is found to be 1.70×10^-3 M s^-1.

The average rate of formation of O₂ over the same time period is  _______M s^-1.

Answer 1

For these types of questions you need to look at the balanced reaction:

2 N₂O --> 2 N₂ + O₂

Now, we can divide everything by 2 in order to set the N₂O coefficient to be 1:

N₂O -->. N₂ = 1/2 O₂

From this equation we can see that for every mole of N₂O consumed there is 1/2 mole of O₂ produced.

Therefore, the average formation rate for O₂ with be 1/2 times the consumption rate of N₂O

Average Rate of Formation for O₂ = 1/2 * 1.70x1-^-3 M s^-1

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