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R1.3Reactivity 1 — What drives chemical reactions?

Energy from fuels — IB Chemistry SL Revision Notes & Topical Questions

20 min read 33 parts Lesson 3 of 8 1 quiz

📚 IB Chemistry SL Hub / Topical Revision
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Curriculum Equation Key قوانين الرقم الهيدروجيني والاتزان الأيوني - pH & Acid-Base Equilibrium FormulasFast Exam Solution
pH = -log[H⁺] | pOH = -log[OH⁻] | pH + pOH = 14 | [H⁺][OH⁻] = 10⁻¹⁴
Word Equation & Conditions: الرقم الهيدروجيني = -لوغاريتم تركيز أيون الهيدروجين | pH + pOH = 14
Location & Specifications: الاتزان الأيوني، كيمياء 3 ثانوي، التحصيلي، و AP Chemistry.
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Lesson summary

R1.3 Energy from fuels — IB CHEMISTRY SL notes: Write equations for complete and incomplete combustion, evaluate fossil fuels and biofuels, link CO2 to climate, calculate specific energy and describe fuel cells.Combustion — a rapid, exothermic oxidation of a fuel that needs oxyge…

  • Non-metals
  • Organic fuels
  • Conditions
  • Hydrocarbons
  • Carbon monoxide
  • Carbon content

Part 1 of 9Combustion reactions

Combustion
  • Combustion a rapid, exothermic oxidation of a fuel that needs oxygen and an ignition source, giving heat and light.
Metals
  • Metals all metals oxidise, but only reactive or finely divided ones combust, e.g. 2Mg + O2 → 2MgO;
    • copper only forms black CuO on heating.
Non-metals
  • Non-metals form covalent, usually acidic oxides, e.g. S + O2 → SO2 and P4 + 5O2 → P4O10.
Redox
  • Redox the fuel is oxidised and oxygen is reduced.
Organic fuels
  • Organic fuels hydrocarbons and alcohols are used because they release much energy,
    • and their high activation energy makes them safe to store and transport.

Part 2 of 9Complete combustion

Conditions
  • Conditions a plentiful supply of oxygen, giving CO2 and H2O.
Hydrocarbons
CxHy + (x + y/4)O2 → xCO2 + (y/2)H2O, e.g. CH4 + 2O2 → CO2 + 2H2O.
Alcohols
  • Alcohols e.g. C2H5OH + 3O2 → 2CO2 + 3H2O, where the oxygen in the alcohol must be counted.
Balancing
  • Balancing balance carbon, then hydrogen, then supply the product oxygen from O2, using fractions and doubling if needed.
Flame
  • Flame a Bunsen burner gives a blue, non-luminous flame.

Part 3 of 9Incomplete combustion

Conditions
  • Conditions limited oxygen, common in car engines and faulty boilers, giving a yellow, luminous flame.
Products
  • Products water plus carbon monoxide and/or carbon (soot), and it releases less energy per mole than complete combustion.
Carbon monoxide
  • Carbon monoxide colourless, odourless and toxic because it binds irreversibly to haemoglobin and prevents oxygen transport, e.g. C3H8 + 3.5O2 → 3CO + 4H2O.
Soot
  • C3H8 + 2O2 → 3C + 4H2O, causing respiratory problems and global dimming.
Hydrogen
  • Hydrogen is never a product because it is preferentially oxidised to water.
Carbon content
  • Carbon content compounds with a higher percentage of carbon, such as benzene derivatives, burn with sootier flames.
Alcohols
  • Alcohols burn more cleanly than hydrocarbons because they already contain oxygen.

Part 4 of 9Fossil fuels

  • Origin
    • coal, oil and natural gas formed over millions of years from dead organisms, so they are non-renewable and finite.
FuelAdvantagesDisadvantages
CoalCheap, widely available, long-lasting, safe to storeMost CO2 per unit energy, SO2 and particulates, mining damage
OilHigh energy density, easily transported and refined by fractional distillation and crackingCO2, SO2, CO and smog, oil spills, uneven distribution
Natural gasCheapest, high specific energy, burns cleanly with least CO2Hard and costly to store under pressure, leaks of methane
  • Chain length
    • as hydrocarbon chains lengthen, more CO2 and less energy per gram are released,
      • and incomplete combustion is more likely; methane releases the most energy per gram.

Part 5 of 9Specific energy and enthalpy of combustion

Heat energy
Heat energy q = mcΔT, with c = 4.18 J g−1 K−1 for water.
What the symbols mean: E, Q or q = energy transferred (J) · m = mass (kg; g in chemistry calorimetry) · c = specific heat capacity (J kg−1 °C−1; water 4.18 J g−1 °C−1) · ΔT or Δθ = temperature change (°C or K)
Enthalpy of combustion
ΔHc = −q/n(fuel), in kJ mol−1.
Specific energy
Specific energy the energy released per unit mass of fuel, equal to |ΔHc| divided by molar mass in kg mol−1 (kJ kg−1).
Energy density
Energy density the energy released per unit volume of fuel (kJ dm−3), equal to specific energy × density.
Experimental method
  • Experimental method burn a fuel in a spirit burner under a copper calorimeter of water and find the fuel mass lost.
Low experimental value
  • Low experimental value the result is less exothermic than the data-booklet value because of heat loss, incomplete combustion, fuel evaporation and heat absorbed by the calorimeter.
Alcohols
  • Alcohols release less energy per gram than hydrocarbons because they are partly oxidised, so ethanol has lower specific energy than octane.

Part 6 of 9Carbon dioxide and the greenhouse effect

Carbon dioxide and the greenhouse effect
Sources
  • Sources burning fossil fuels, deforestation, livestock (methane) and decomposition of carbonates.
    • (especially for electricity)
Greenhouse gases
  • CO2, CH4, N2O/NOx and water vapour.
Mechanism
  • Mechanism short-wavelength radiation from the Sun reaches the Earth,
  • which re-emits longer-wavelength infrared, and greenhouse gases absorb it because their bond vibrations change the dipole moment.
Re-radiation
  • Re-radiation the gases re-emit the energy in all directions, trapping heat.
Enhanced greenhouse effect
  • Enhanced greenhouse effect extra warming from human-made increases in greenhouse gas concentrations, causing global warming and climate change.
Oceans
  • Oceans dissolved CO2 forms carbonic acid, causing ocean acidification.
Monitoring
  • Mauna Loa records CO2 since 1958, with seasonal fluctuations caused by photosynthesis.

Part 7 of 9Biofuels

Renewable resources
  • Renewable resources replaced as fast as or faster than they are used; non-renewable ones are finite.
Bioethanol
  • Bioethanol glucose from photosynthesis is fermented anaerobically by yeast, C6H12O6 → 2C2H5OH + 2CO2.
Biodiesel
  • Biodiesel triglycerides react with methanol by transesterification, usually with an alkali catalyst, to give methyl esters;
    • excess methanol shifts the equilibrium.
Biogas
  • Biogas anaerobic breakdown of organic waste gives mostly CH4 and CO2.
Carbon neutrality
  • CO2 absorbed in growth equals that released on burning, but energy used in farming, transport and processing adds CO2.
AdvantagesDisadvantages
Renewable and close to carbon neutralLand used instead of food crops and deforestation
Can be made from organic waste, reducing landfillFertiliser and pesticide use and soil depletion
Create jobs and incomeLower specific energy than fossil fuels and costly engine conversion

Part 8 of 9Fuel cells

Definition
Definition an electrochemical cell that converts the chemical energy of a continuously supplied fuel and oxidant directly into electrical energy.
Operation
  • Operation the cell runs while fuel and oxygen are supplied, with no recharging, and energy is not stored in the cell.
Efficiency
  • Efficiency higher than combustion engines because chemical energy becomes electrical energy without passing through heat.
CellAnodeCathode
Hydrogen, acidic (PEM)H2 → 2H+ + 2e−O2 + 4H+ + 4e− → 2H2O
Hydrogen, alkalineH2 + 2OH− → 2H2O + 2e−O2 + 2H2O + 4e− → 4OH−
Methanol (PEM)CH3OH + H2O → CO2 + 6H+ + 6e−O2 + 4H+ + 4e− → 2H2O
1Overall
  • Overall hydrogen cell 2H2 + O2 → 2H2O (E = +1.23 V) and methanol cell 2CH3OH + 3O2 → 2CO2 + 4H2O.
2Hydrogen cell advantages
  • Hydrogen cell advantages water is the only product, no NOx, quiet with no moving parts.
3Hydrogen cell disadvantages
  • Hydrogen cell disadvantages expensive platinum catalyst, flammable and hard-to-store hydrogen with low energy density by volume,
    • and mostly made from fossil fuels.
4Methanol cell versus hydrogen
  • Methanol cell versus hydrogen easier to store, higher energy density by volume and can come from biomass,
    • but toxic, flammable, lower power and it produces CO2.

Part 9 of 9More from the specification

Carbon dioxide
  • A gas that turns limewater cloudy.
Chemical formula
  • Symbols and numbers showing the relative number of atoms of each element.

Key terms

TermMeaning
Complete combustionCombustion in excess oxygen giving CO2 and H2O.
Incomplete combustionCombustion in limited oxygen giving CO and/or C as well as water.
Specific energyThe energy released per unit mass of fuel.
Energy densityThe energy released per unit volume of fuel.
BiofuelA fuel made from recently living biomass.
Greenhouse gasA gas that absorbs infrared radiation emitted by the Earth.
Fuel cellA cell converting the chemical energy of a continuously supplied fuel directly into electrical energy.

Avoid these mistakes

1
Forgetting the oxygen in an alcohol when balancing — count it on the reactant side.
2
Stating hydrogen forms in incomplete combustion — hydrogen is oxidised to water first.
3
Saying biofuels are always carbon neutral — farming and processing add CO2.
4
Saying greenhouse gases trap the Sun's rays — they absorb infrared emitted by the Earth.

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