Re-exam 26030 F17

Question 1:

The solubility of silver(I) sulphate (Ag2SO4) is known to be 12.4 g/L in pure water at 80 °C. What
is the solubility product at this elevated temperature?

A Ksp (80 °C) ≈ 2.5 · 10-2 M3

B Ksp (80 °C) ≈ 2.5 · 10-3 M3
C Ksp (80 °C) ≈ 2.5 · 10-4 M3
D Ksp (80 °C) ≈ 2.5 · 10-5 M3
E Ksp (80 °C) ≈ 2.5 · 10-6 M3

Question 2:

Both silver(I) sulphate (Ag2SO4) and calcium sulphate (CaSO4) are rather insoluble in water at low
temperatures. In spite of the rather similar solubility products in pure water at 25 °C (Ksp(Ag2SO4) =
1.6 · 10-5 M3, Ksp(CaSO4) = 2.3 · 10-5 M2) only silver(I) sulphate will dissolve upon the addition of
concentrated ammonia (NH3). What is the origin of this difference?

A The acidic properties of ammonia are sufficient for dissolving silver(I) sulphate but not
calcium sulphate
B Ammonia can oxidise Ag(I) to Ag(II) under the formation of NO and/or NO2. This oxidation
is not possible for Ca which is already at its maximum oxidation state
C Actually they will both initially dissolve but Ca will rapidly re-precipitate as Ca(OH)2 and it
will appear like nothing happens in this case
D Being a transition metal silver has a much larger tendency to form coordination compounds
with a strong ligand such as ammonia
E They will both dissolve over time but the kinetics are much slower in the case of calcium
sulphate and it only appears like nothing happens

Question 3:

Phosgene (COCl2) was used as a chemical weapon during World War I. It forms hydrochloric acid
(HCl) upon reaction with water and crosslinks proteins through reactions with amines altogether
causing damages to the lungs and subsequent suffocation.
Which is the more plausible configuration of this reactive molecule?

Cl
A O
Cl
+
Cl Cl
- -
O O
B +
Cl Cl
(A resonance structure)
+
Cl Cl
- -
O O
C +
Cl Cl
(A resonance structure)
 Cl
+
D O
-
C Cl
Cl
E O
- +
C Cl

Question 4:

Mark the correct structure of (ortho)phosphoric acid (H3PO4), phosphorous acid (H3PO3) and
hypophosphorous acid (H3PO2) knowing that they have 3, 2 and 1 acidic protons respectively:

(H3PO4) (H3PO3) (H3PO2)

OH OH OH

A HO P OH P H P O
O HO OH H
H H
H OH H
HO OH H H
B P P P
O O O O O O
OH H OH

C HO P OH HO P OH H P O
O O H
O
H H OH H
D P
P P
O O OH
OH HO OH HO
OH H H
E HO P OH HO P OH P
HO OH
O O

Question 5:

What is the formal oxidation number of phosphorus (P) in (ortho)phosphoric acid (H3PO4),
phosphorous acid (H3PO3) and hypophosphorous acid (H3PO2) and which is the stronger reducing
agent?

A + V, + III, + I, H3PO2
B - V, - III, - I, H3PO2
C + V, + III, + I, H3PO4
D - V, - III, - I, H3PO4
E - V, - III, - I, H3PO3

Question 6:

Borax (Na2B4O7 · 10 H2O) is commonly used to prepare buffer solutions due to the formation of
equal amounts of boric acid (B(OH)3) and its corresponding base tetrahydroxyborate (B(OH)4-)
when reacting with water:

B4O72- + 7 H2O → 2 B(OH)3 + 2 B(OH4)-

Calculate the pH of a 1.0 M solution of borax in water assuming that the Ka of boric acid is 6 · 10-10
M?

A pH ≈ 7.2
B pH ≈ 8.2
C pH ≈ 9.2
D pH ≈ 10.2
E pH ≈ 11.2

Question 7:

Both alkali metals and alkaline earth metals are reactive towards air and water and with water they
will form bases and hydrogen gas (H2) as illustrated with barium (Ba):

Ba (s) + 2 H2O (l) → Ba(OH)2 (aq) + H2 (g)

The reactivity towards water varies greatly and systematically. Rank cesium (Cs), rubidium (Rb),
potassium (K), calcium (Ca) and magnesium (Mg) according to their reactivity towards water:

A Cs > Rb > K > Ca > Mg

B Mg > Ca > K > Rb > Cs
C K > Rb > Cs > Mg > Ca
D K < Rb < Cs < Mg < Ca
E Cs > Ca > Rb > Mg > K

Question 8:

Rank the following species according to a decreasing degree of ionic character of the bond:

Sodium fluoride (NaF), barium sulphide (BaS), barium oxide (BaO), difluorine (F2) or nitrogen
monoxide (NO)

A NaF > BaO > BaS > NO > F2

B NaF > F2 > BaO > NO > BaS
C NaF > BaS > BaO > NO > F2
D NaF > BaO > BaS > F2 > NO
E NaF < F2 < BaO < NO < BaS

Question 9:

During an experiment a nitrogen oxide was synthesized and collected in a bag and the following
properties were measured:

T = 100 °C
P = 1.0 atm
ρ = 3.0 g/L

Which nitrogen oxide was most likely synthesised?

A NO
B NO2
C N2O
D N2O4
E N2O5

Question 10:

Ammonia (NH3) can be synthesised from nitrogen (N2) and hydrogen (H2) through the following
reaction:

N2 (g) + 3 H2 (g) → 2 NH3 (g)

The following values have been measured:

∆H° (kJ/mol) ∆S° (J/(mol · K))

N2 (g) 0 191.61
H2 (g) 0 130.79
NH3 (g) -46.11 192.4

Calculate ∆G° and K at 25 °C using the above values:

A ∆G° = - 32.8 kJ/mol and K = 5.65 · 105

B ∆G° = - 32.8 kJ/mol and K = 5.65 · 10-5
C ∆G° = + 32.8 kJ/mol and K = 5.65 · 105
D ∆G° = + 32.8 kJ/mol and K = 1.75 · 10-6
E ∆G° = - 32.8 kJ/mol and K = 1.75 · 10-6

Question 11:

The synthesis of ammonia, through the above reaction, becomes less favourable with increasing
temperatures and more favourable with increasing pressures. What is the reason for that?

A The reaction pathway changes with temperature and pressure changing the reaction kinetics
and thus the equilibrium constant.
B As the reaction is exothermic energy is released in the reaction disfavouring an increase in
temperature.
Additionally the reaction results in an overall decrease in the number of molecules which, for
entropic reasons, is disfavoured at high temperatures but favoured by high pressures.
C As the reaction is endothermic energy is used in the reaction disfavouring an increase in
temperature.
Additionally the reaction results in an overall decrease in the number of molecules which, for
entropic reasons, is disfavoured at high temperatures but favoured by high pressures.
D The only effect is the overall decrease in the number of molecules which, for entropic reasons,
is disfavoured at high temperatures but favoured by high pressures.
E It is correct that changes in temperature and pressure will have the effects described but in
reality the impact is so small that they can be completely ignored.

Question 12:

Even though the production of ammonia is disfavoured by high temperatures such conditions are
still favoured for the industrial production of ammonia. Typical conditions are 150 – 250 bar and
400 – 500 °C. Additionally a catalyst is used. Why are high temperatures used even though they are
unfavourable and why is the catalyst used?
A The effect of the high temperature is more than counteracted by applying the high pressure
and is actually just a minor side effect caused by applying the pressure. The catalyst further
shifts the equilibrium in favour of product.
B The catalyst needs high temperatures to be active and the change in equilibrium caused by the
catalyst more than counteracts the disadvantages of the higher temperature.
C At high temperatures the use of the catalyst allows for a new reaction pathway thus altering
the overall reaction enthalpy while keeping the entropy approximately constant.
D The catalyst increases the forward reaction rate so much that the reaction becomes rather
uncontrollable thus raising the pressure and temperature significantly. Therefor the production
is always combined with other processes that can use the pressure and temperature. An
example could be a steam turbine for power production.
E The higher temperature is needed to break the strong triple bond of nitrogen which requires a
significant input of energy. The catalyst helps by reducing the activation energy.

Question 13:

For the following reaction the rate constant were obtained at different temperatures:

2 N2O5 (g) → 4 NO2 (g) + O2 (g),

Temperature (°C) 45 50 55 60
Rate constant k (s-1) 4.8 · 10-4 8.8 · 10-4 1.6 · 10-3 2.8 · 10-3

Calculate the activation energy (Ea) for this reaction:

A Ea ≈ 1 kJ/mol
B Ea ≈ 50 kJ/mol
C Ea ≈ 10 kJ/mol
D Ea ≈ 5 kJ/mol
E Ea ≈ 100 kJ/mol

Question 14:

Consider the following kinetic data for the reaction:

S2O82- (aq) + 3 I- (aq) → 2 SO42- (aq) + I3- (aq)

[S2O82-] (M) [I-] (M) Initial rate (M/s)

0.038 0.60 1.5 · 10-5
0.076 0.60 2.8 · 10-5
0.038 1.20 2.9 · 10-5
0.076 1.20 5.8 · 10-5

What is the rate law for the reaction?

A Rate = k · [S2O82-]2 · [I-]2

B Rate = k · [S2O82-]2 · [I-]
C Rate = k · [S2O82-] · [I-]2
D Rate = k · [S2O82-] · [I-]
E Rate = k · [S2O82-]
Question 15:

A student wants to change the pH of a dilute solution of a strong acid from 4 to 8. What is the better
approach?

A Since the pH is doubled the [H+] needs to be half of the original. A dilution with a factor of
two is thus need
B By definition the pH scale is logarithmic and a dilution with a factor of 104 is needed
C More acid needs to be added as a dilution with a factor of more than ten is impractical
D A change from acidic to alkaline conditions cannot be achieved by simple dilution. A titration
with a base is needed
E The acid anion should be precipitated as an insoluble salt, through a titration, thus shifting the
equilibrium constant

Question 16:

Hess’s law states that for some thermodynamic properties, such as Gibbs free energy, the changes
are independent of the path and the properties are thus additive.
This is however not always true for standard reduction potentials. E.g.:

(1) E°(Fe3+/Fe2+) = 0.77 V

(2) E°(Fe2+/Fe) = - 0.44 V
(3) E°(Fe3+/Fe) = - 0.04 V ≠ (1) + (2)

What is the origin of this difference between Gibbs free energy and standard reduction potentials?

A The amount of transferred electrons are different in the above case. The standard reduction
potentials therefore needs to be converted to Gibbs free energy which is directly additive
B The standard reduction potentials depend on concentration as stated by the Nernst Equation
C The standard reduction potentials are only additive when each half-cell reaction has the same
sign. That is favourable and unfavourable reactions are not additive with each other
D Being an intensive property changing the stoichiometric coefficient has no effect in the case
of standard reduction potentials. In other words standard reduction potentials are unaffected
by e.g. size of the electrode or the amount of solutions present and are thus not directly
additive
E The reference states are defined differently for Gibbs free energy and standard reduction
potentials

Question 17:

Free metals can often be produced, at high temperatures, by the reduction of a metal oxide with
coal. E.g.:

2 Fe2O3 (s) + 3 C (s) → 4 Fe (s) + 3 CO2 (g)

Calculate ∆H° by using the following reactions:

C (s) + O2 (g) → CO2 (g) ∆H° = -393.5 kJ/mol

C (s) + CO2 (g) → 2 CO (g) ∆H° = 172.5 kJ/mol
Fe2O3 (s) + C (s) → 2 FeO (s) + CO (g) ∆H° = 167.7 kJ/mol
FeO (s) + CO (g) → Fe (s) + CO2 (g) ∆H° = - 11.0 kJ/mol
Further state if the reaction is favourable for enthalpic reasons only:

A ∆H° = 463.9 kJ/mol – not favourable

B ∆H° = 463.9 kJ/mol – favourable
C ∆H° = - 463.9 kJ/mol – not favourable
D ∆H° = - 329.2 kJ/mol – favourable
E ∆H° = 329.2 kJ/mol – not favourable

Question 18:

Phosphorous (P) has the electron configuration 1s22s22p63s23p3

How are the 3p electrons distributed?

A ↑↓ ↓
B ↑↓ ↑
C ↑ ↑ ↑
D ↑ ↓ ↑
E ↓ ↑ ↓
px py pz

Question 19:

Ephedrine has been a popular supplement for bodybuilders as it can induce short-term weight loss
before a competition:

OH
NH
CH3
CH3

What will happen to the alcohol upon oxidation and what are the names of the two other functional
groups?

A A ketone is formed upon oxidation. The two other functional groups are an amine and a
double bond
B An aldehyde is formed upon oxidation. The two other functional groups are an amine and a
double bond
C A ketone is formed upon oxidation. The two other functional groups are an amine and an
aromatic ring
D An aldehyde is formed upon oxidation. The two other functional groups are an amine and an
aromatic ring
E A carboxylic acid is formed upon oxidation. The two other functional groups are an amine
and an aromatic ring

Question 20:

Which of the following salts are soluble in water?

Na2CO3, MgCO3, BaSO4, CuSO4, PbCl2 or NiCl2

A Chlorides and sulphates are generally soluble in water so the last four salts
B All except MgCO3 as alkali salts, chlorides and sulphates are generally soluble in water
C Only Na2CO3 as the others are salts of heavy metals
D Only Na2CO3, CuSO4 and NiCl2 as BaSO4 and PbCl2 are insoluble exceptions
E Being salts they are all soluble