International Chemistry Olympiad

IChO 1987

Veszprém – Budapest, Hungary · 5 theory problems with complete solutions

  1. Problem 1: Carbohydrate oxidation and fermentation in a sewage plant

    Treating waste water in a sewage plant, 45 % of its carbohydrate \(\ce{(CH2O)_n}\) is completely oxidized, 10 % undergoes anaerobic decomposition by fermentation (two components) and the rest remains in the sludge. The total gas formation is \(16\ \mathrm{m^3}\) per day (\(25\ ^\circ\mathrm{C}\), \(100\ \mathrm{kPa}\)).

    1.1 What is the amount of carbohydrate remaining in the sludge measured in kg per day?

    1.2 Using the heat of combustion of methane (\(-882\ \mathrm{kJ\,mol^{-1}}\)), calculate the amount of energy that can be produced by combustion of the methane formed per day.

    1.3 Knowing that the concentration of the carbohydrate in the waste water is \(250\ \mathrm{mg\,dm^{-3}}\), calculate the daily amount of waste water processed in the plant in \(\mathrm{m^3}\) of water per day.

    Official English text of the problem.

  2. Problem 2: Identification of a hydrated sodium phosphate by acid-base titration

    500 mg of a hydrated sodium salt of phosphoric acid are dissolved in 50.0 cm³ of 0.1 molar sulphuric acid. This solution is diluted with distilled water to 100.0 cm³ and 20.0 cm³ of it are titrated with 0.100 molar \(\ce{NaOH}\) solution using thymolphthalein as indicator. The average of the burette reading is 26.53 cm³. The pH at the end-point is 10.00.

    Problems:

    2.1 Calculate the percentage distribution by moles of all protonated \(\ce{H_{n}PO4^{n-3}}\) species at the end-point.

    2.2 What is the stoichiometric formula of the salt?

    The cumulative protonation constants are given by

    \[ \beta_n= \frac{[\ce{H_{n}PO4^{n-3}}]} {[\ce{PO4^3-}][\ce{H+}]^n} \]

    where \(\log\beta_1=11.70;\quad \log\beta_2=18.6;\quad \log\beta_3=20.6.\)

    The relative atomic masses are: Na = 23.0; P = 31.0; H = 1.0; O = 16.0.

    Official English text of the problem.

  3. Problem 3: Potentiometric titration of a chloride-cyanide mixture with silver nitrate

    25.00 \(\mathrm{cm^3}\) of a neutral solution containing potassium chloride and potassium cyanide are potentiometrically titrated with a standard 0.1000 molar silver nitrate solution at \(25\,^\circ\mathrm{C}\) using a silver electrode and a normal calomel half-cell with \(\ce{KNO3}\) - salt bridge. The protonation of cyanide ions is negligible. The potentiometric curve obtained (emf (V)) vs. burette readings (in \(\mathrm{cm^3}\)) is shown in Fig. 1.

    Figure 1

    Fig. 1

    3.1 The end points of the reactions taking place during the titration, are marked with A, B and C. Write the balanced ionic equation for each reaction.

    3.2 What volume of the titrant is required to reach point B?

    3.3 Calculate the concentrations of \(\ce{KCl}\) and \(\ce{KCN}\) (in \(\mathrm{mol\,dm^{-3}}\)) in the sample solution.

    3.4 Calculate the emf readings at the points A and C in volts.

    3.5 What is the molar ratio \(\ce{Cl-}/\ce{CN-}\) in the solution and in the precipitate at point C?

    Data:

    \[ E^\circ(\ce{Ag+}/\ce{Ag})=0.800\ \mathrm{V} \]

    \[ E^\circ(\text{Calomel})=0.285\ \mathrm{V} \]

    \[ K_{\mathrm{sp}}(\ce{AgCN})=10^{-15.8} \]

    \[ K_{\mathrm{sp}}(\ce{AgCl})=10^{-9.75} \]

    \[ \beta_2= \frac{[\ce{[Ag(CN)2]-}]}{[\ce{Ag+}][\ce{CN-}]^2} =10^{21.1} \]

    Official English text of the problem.

  4. Problem 4: Reaction sequence leading to indene (compounds A-I)

    Write the structural formulae of the compounds A to I in the following reaction sequence.

    Figure 1

    Official English text of the problem.

  5. Problem 5: Organic chemistry questions: chlorination, alcohols, aldohexoses, C4H8 isomers, lecithin, citric acid cycle, NAD+

    5.1 What ratio of primary / secondary / tertiary products can statistically be expected in the high temperature chlorination of methyl butane? Assume that the reaction rate of the substitution is equal for all C-H bonds.

    5.2 Which of the following alcohols: pentan-1-ol, pentan-2-ol and 2-methyl-butan-2-ol react with the following reagents listed below?

    1) cold, concentrated sulphuric acid; 2) \(\ce{CrO3 / H2SO4}\); 3) \(\ce{ZnCl2 / HCl}\); 4) \(\ce{I2 / NaOH}\)

    5.3 Which of the following aldohexose structures are:

    1) enantiomer pairs, 2) diastereomer pairs?

    Figure 1

    5.4 Two hydrocarbon compounds of the same molecular formula, \(\ce{C4H8}\), easily react with hydrogen in the presence of a platinum catalyst. During ozonolysis only ethanal (acetaldehyde) is formed in both cases. The \(\ce{^1H}\)-NMR spectra of the two compounds show two types of protons in a ratio of 3 to 1. Draw the structures of the described compounds.

    5.5 Select the components of the group listed below that can be obtained during complete hydrolysis of lecithin (a phospholipid): serine, phosphoric acid, sphingosine, choline, glycerol, myo-inositol, phosphatidic acid and fatty acids).

    5.6 Which of the following carboxylic acid can be formed in the tricarboxylic acid cycle (Krebs' citric acid cycle):

    maleic acid (cis-butenedioic acid), mandelic acid (a-hydroxy-phenylethanoic acid), malic acid (2-hydroxy-butanedioic acid), tricarb-allylic acid (propane-1,2,3-tricarboxylic acid), oxalacetic acid (2-oxo-butanedioic acid), keto-glutaric acid (2-oxo-pentanedioic acid), fumaric acid (trans-butenedioic acid) and acetoacetic acid (3-oxo-butanoic acid).

    5.7 To which structures is the nicotinamide moiety (part) of \(\ce{NAD+}\) converted during the uptake of hydrogen to form \(\ce{NADH}\) (A, B or C)?

    Figure 2

    Official English text of the problem.