Combustion Equation

D. Crowley, 2008

Combustion

To know the equation for combustion, and how to test for its products

Wednesday, April 19, 2023

Riddle

Take away oxygen and I no longer live

Heat and light is what I so often give

I have so much energy that I just have to release

Hydrocarbons make a lovely feast!

Get in my way and you’ll have a fright

I will certainly hurt, although I do not bite.

What a peculiar riddle I hear you cry

But tell me this, just who am I?

Fire

Combustion

• What is combustion?

• Combustion is the scientific name for burning – a chemical reaction

• Combustion is the reaction when a substance burns and reacts with oxygen to produce heat and light energy

Candle• Why does the candle in experiment 1 go out and why does the

candle in experiment 2 rise?

• As the candle burns, oxygen is used up (eventually causing the candle to go out). As the oxygen is used up there is a pressure change, causing the water to be sucked up from the bowl

Combustion

• What is made during combustion – what does the limewater and cobalt chloride test for?

• Limewater test for carbon dioxide (cloudy) and the cobalt chloride paper shows that water was also produced

Combustion

• Combustion results in the formation of both carbon dioxide & water

• When substances burn, reacting with oxygen, the new products formed are called oxides

Carbon + Oxygen → Carbon Dioxide

Hydrogen + Oxygen → Water

Methane (CH4) is often used in cooking (it contains both carbon & hydrogen)

• When it is burnt in oxygen it produces the following products: -

Methane + Oxygen → Carbon Dioxide + Water

Carbon Dioxide

• Combustion produces carbon dioxide – why can this be a problem?

• Carbon dioxide is a greenhouse gas – it traps heat which can lead to global warming…

Global Warming

• Your task is to produce a poster as a group which shows us why combustion (via factories & cars) can be a really bad thing (thinking about CO2 production leading to global warming)

• Think about why we should cut down on the amount of fossil fuels we burn & consider what alternatives we could use…

Carbon Footprint

• You can work out your carbon footprint: -

Carbon Footprint