How many gram of sodium (atomic mass 23 u) is required to prepare one mole of ethane from methyl chloride by Wurtz reaction?

Options

A. 2
B. 23
C. 11.5
D. 46

Answer

D

Explanation

The Wurtz reaction between methyl chloride and sodium metal in presence of dry ether can be written as :
`2_CH_(3)CI + 2Na overset("Dry ether")(to) underset("Ethane")(CH_(2) - CH_(3)) + 2NaCI`
`implies` 2 mole of sodium metal reacts to give 1 mole of ethane.
Also,
1 mole of Na metal = 23 g
`:.` 2 mole of Na metal `= 23 xx 2 = 46 g`
Thus, 46g of sodium is required to prepare one mole of ethane from methyl chloride by Wurtz reaction.