In manufacturing of Cl₂ gas, according to the reaction:
HCl + O₂ \xrightarrow{CuCl₂}
{Cl is one isotope of chlorine}
The probable products for this reaction are:
(i) Cl₂ + H₂O
(ii) Cl₂ + H₂O
(iii) Cl-Cl + H₂O
Which of the above three set of products can actually be obtained?
(A) only (i)
(B) (i) & (ii)
(C) only (iii)
(D) (i), (ii) & (iii)
Answer (1)
In this question, we are looking at the reaction between hydrochloric acid (HCl) and oxygen (O₂) in the presence of a catalyst, copper(II) chloride (CuCl₂), to produce chlorine gas (Cl₂).
The actual chemical reaction involved is the Deacon process, which is used industrially for producing chlorine. The balanced chemical equation for this reaction is:
4 e x t H Cl + e x t O 2 C u C l 2 2 e x t Cl 2 + 2 e x t H 2 e x t O
From the analysis of this equation, the products formed are chlorine gas (Cl₂) and water (H₂O).
Now, let's evaluate the options provided:
(i) Cl₂ + H₂O : This is exactly what is formed in the balanced chemical reaction. Therefore, this set of products is indeed correct.
(ii) Cl₂ + H₂O : This seems to be a repetition of the first option, and it is correct as explained above.
(iii) Cl-Cl + H₂O : 'Cl-Cl' is simply another way of representing molecular chlorine (Cl₂), as chlorine gas is made up of Cl₂ molecules. This effectively represents the same products as in (i) and (ii). Therefore, this is also correct.
Since all the options mention the formation of Cl₂ and H₂O, and they are all correct interpretations of the chemical reaction, the correct answer is:
(D) (i), (ii) & (iii)
The Deacon process efficiently converts HCl into Cl₂ with the help of a catalyst, typically in an industrial setting.
