Try it on paper first. A hint, the key idea and the worked solution are here when you need them.
An electrolytic cell for aluminium carries a current of for at a voltage of . Only of the current deposits aluminium. Take , and . The graphite anode burns to carbon dioxide only: . Find the mass of aluminium formed, the electrical energy used in kilowatt hours, the energy for each kilogram of aluminium, and the mass of carbon burned.
Faraday's law for aluminium: with . Energy in kilowatt hours is . Thermite: gives out for 2 mol of Al. A hydrate has its water in the molar mass.
Have you tried it?
Work it out on paper first. It is fine to get stuck or make a mistake: that is how we learn. When you are ready, go through the solution one step at a time, and check each step against your own.
Step 1. Charge. .
Step 2. Aluminium. Moles of aluminium . The mass is , which is or about .
Step 3. Energy. . Divide by to get .
Step 4. For each kilogram. .
Step 5. Carbon. The carbon is of the moles of aluminium: , which is .
Answer: , , and .
Check. About of carbon is used for each kilogram of aluminium, which is in line with real cells (about , since some carbon is lost to air and to dust).
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