If iron pyrite, fes2, is not removed from coal, oxygen from the air will combine with both the iron and the sulfur as coal burns. if a furnace burns an amount of coal containing 202.33 g of fes2, how much so2 (an air pollutant) is produced?

This is an example of combustion reaction, a substance is reacted with oxygen to form products. The balanced reaction for the burning of FeS2 is:

2 FeS2 + 5.5 O2 ---> 4 SO2 + Fe2O3

Therefore based on stoichiometric ratio of the reaction, for every 2 moles of FeS2, 4 moles of SO2 is produced.

First, lets calculate for the number of moles of FeS2 supplied: (molar mass of FeS2 = 119.965 g/mol)

n FeS2 = 202.33 g / (119.965 g/mol)

n FeS2 = 1.6866 mol

Calculate for the number of moles of SO2 produced using the ratio:

n SO2 = 1.6866 mol (4 / 2) = 3.373 mol SO2

Converting to mass: (molar mass SO2 = 64.066 g/mol)

m SO2 = 3.373 mol * 64.066 g/mol

m SO2 = 216.10 g         (ANSWER)