What mass of CO2 can be removed from the atmosphere by 1.00 lb(454 g) of LiOH?

Question

The exhaled carbon dioxide produced as a normal waste product of metabolism must be removed from the cabins of space vehicles. On the space shuttle, CO2 is removed from the cabin air by lithium hydroxide, which reacts as follows:

2 LiOH(s) + CO2(g) -----------> Li2CO3(s) + H2) (l)

What mass of CO2 can be removed from the atmosphere by 1.00 lb(454 g) of LiOH?

Answer 1

From the reaction, 2 moles LiOH react with one mole CO2.

So find out how many moles of LiOH you have in 454 g LiOH. Then divide by two (according to the first sentence above) and you have the number of moles of CO2.

Finally multiply the number of moles of CO2 by the molecular weight of CO2 and you will get the mass of CO2.

If you don't understand you should do something else. Nothing to do with chemistry.

Answer 2

Take the weight of a LiOH molecule (add up the weight of the atoms) divide into 1 lb then multiply by the weight of a molecule of CO2. Then you will remove only 1/2 of that because there are 2 molecules of LiOH to every molecule of CO2.