Biodiesel makes use of plants ability to fix atmospheric carbon by photosynthesis. Many companies and individuals are using biodiesel as a fuel in order to reduce their carbon footprint. Biodiesel can be synthesized from vegetable oil according to the following reaction.
VEGETABLE OIL +METHANOL <-----> GLYCEROL + BIODIESEL
If R = C17 H 33, the molecular mass of oil is 885.6 g and react 1013.0 g of oil with 200 g of methanol;
1. How many moles of each reactant do you have?
2. Which is the limiting reactant and how many moles are in excess?