Suppose the combustion of fossil fuels adds about 8.0 * 10¹² kg of carbon to the atmosphere per year in the form of CO₂.How much oxygen gas is required to produce this amount of carbon dioxide?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The combustion of carbon to form carbon dioxide (CO2) involves the reaction of carbon (C) with oxygen (O2). The molecular weight of carbon is 12 g/mol, and that of oxygen is 16 g/mol. Since CO2 consists of one carbon atom and two oxygen atoms, the molecular weight of CO2 is 12 + (2*16) = 44 g/mol. The ratio of the mass of oxygen required to the mass of carbon is therefore (2*16)/12. For 8.0 x 10^12 kg of carbon, the mass of oxygen required is (8.0 x 10^12 kg) * (32/12) = 2.1 x 10^13 kg.

Suppose the Combustion of Fossil Fuels Adds About 8