What is the significance of a limiting reactant Discuss how

What is the significance of a limiting reactant? Discuss how it is found and what it tells us about the amount of product that can be formed. Give a specific example.

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Solution

Limiting reagent in a chemical reaction is a substance which is totally consumed after the completion of reaction. It is significant in a chemical reaction as it decides the amount of product that will be formed for given amount of limiting reagent. The amount of product formed can be calculated by simple stochiometric calculations by balancing the chemical equation. Example-

H2+ 1/2O2 -> H2O

For the given reaction one mole of hydrogen reacts with half mole of oxygen to give one mole of H2O or in other words we can say 2gm of hydrogen reacts with 16gm of oxygen to give 18gm of H2O. Now if we reduce the mass of hydrogen from 2 gm to 1 gm ( from 1 mole hydrogen to 0.5 mole) and keep the amount of oxygen as 16gm( 1/2 mole), hydrogen will act as limiting reagent and will decide the amount of H2O formed.

By stochiometric calculations 1 mole of hydrogen gives 1 mole of H2O as we can see from the reaction. So now 0.5 mole of hydrogen will give 0.5 mole of H2O irrespective of moles of O2 as hydrogen is limiting reagent in this case. So from 1 gm hydrogen 9gm of H2O will form.