IChO 1990 · Theory problem 4

Chemical thermodynamics

The production of zinc from zinc sulphide proceeds in two stages: the roasting of zinc sulphide in the air and the reduction of the zinc oxide formed by carbon monoxide. In this problem we will consider the roasting of zinc sulphide.

This operation consists in burning zinc sulphide in the air. The equation of the reaction taking place is as follows:

Figure 1

Industrially this reaction is carried out at 1350 K.

4.1 Show that the reaction can be self-sustaining, i.e. that the heat produced is sufficient to bring the reactants from ambient temperature to the reaction temperature.

Suppose that the zinc containing mineral contains only zinc sulphide, \(\ce{ZnS}\).

4.2 Starting with a stoichiometric mixture of one mole zinc blend only and a necessary quantity of the air at 298 K, calculate the temperature to which the mixture will raise by the heat evolved during the roasting of the mineral at 1350 K under standard pressure. Is the reaction self-sustaining? Air is considered to be a mixture of oxygen and nitrogen in a volume ratio equal to 1 : 4.

In fact, zinc blend is never pure and is always mixed with a gangue that can be assumed to be entirely silica \(\ce{SiO2}\).

4.3 Assuming that the gangue does not react during the roasting, calculate the minimum \(\ce{ZnS}\) content of the mineral for which the reaction would be self-sustaining at 1350 K despite the presence of silica. Give the answer is grams of \(\ce{ZnS}\) per hundred grams of zinc blend.

Data:

Standard molar heat capacities averaged over the temperature range considered (in \(\mathrm{J\,K^{-1}\,mol^{-1}}\)):

\(\ce{ZnS}\) (solid): 58.05 \(\ce{ZnO}\) (solid): 51.64
\(\ce{SO2}\) (gas): 51.10 \(\ce{O2}\) (gas): 34.24
\(\ce{N2}\) (gas): 30.65 \(\ce{SiO2}\) (solid): 72.50

Molar masses (in \(\mathrm{g\,mol^{-1}}\)):

\(\ce{ZnS}\) \(\ce{SiO2}\)
97.5 60.1

Official English text of the problem.

Answers

  • 4.1: Yes. Heating the stoichiometric feed from 298 to 1350 K requires 308.56 kJ per mole of \(\ce{ZnS}\), whereas roasting releases 448.98 kJ.
  • 4.2: Assigning the stated reaction heat to heating the initial reactant mixture gives 1829 K, so the reaction is self-sustaining. If the requested temperature means the adiabatic final temperature of the reacted products, it is 1840 K.
  • 4.3: The minimum content is 46.8 g of \(\ce{ZnS}\) per 100 g of mineral, under the ideal heat balance.

Solution

Use the supplied mean heat capacities as constants, take ambient temperature as 298 K, and neglect heat losses and phase changes.

The molecular gases involved are oxygen, \(\ce{O2}\), O=O; nitrogen, \(\ce{N2}\), N#N; and sulphur dioxide, \(\ce{SO2}\), O=S=O. Zinc sulphide, zinc oxide and silica are extended solids, so individual molecular SMILES do not describe their bulk structures.

4.1

The balanced roasting reaction is

\[ \ce{ZnS(s) + 3/2 O2(g) -> ZnO(s) + SO2(g)}, \]

with

\[ \Delta_{\mathrm r}H^\circ_{1350} =-448.98\ \mathrm{kJ\,mol^{-1}}. \]

For one mole of \(\ce{ZnS}\), the stoichiometric oxygen requirement is \(1.5\) mol. Since the oxygen-to-nitrogen volume ratio is \(1:4\), the accompanying nitrogen is

\[ n(\ce{N2})=4(1.5)=6.0\ \mathrm{mol}. \]

Thus, including the inert nitrogen,

\[ \ce{ZnS(s) + 3/2 O2(g) + 6 N2(g) -> ZnO(s) + SO2(g) + 6 N2(g)}. \]

The total heat capacity of this feed is

\[ \begin{aligned} C_R &=(1)(58.05)+(1.5)(34.24)+(6)(30.65)\\ &=293.31\ \mathrm{J\,K^{-1}}. \end{aligned} \]

Heating it from 298 to 1350 K requires

\[ \begin{aligned} Q_{\mathrm{preheat}} &=C_R(1350-298)\\ &=(293.31)(1052)\\ &=308\,562.12\ \mathrm J\\ &=308.56\ \mathrm{kJ}. \end{aligned} \]

Therefore,

\[ Q_{\mathrm{released}}-Q_{\mathrm{preheat}} =448.98-308.56212 =140.42\ \mathrm{kJ}>0. \]

The reaction releases sufficient heat to bring fresh reactants, including the nitrogen in the air, to 1350 K. Once initiated, the ideal roasting process can be self-sustaining.

4.2

For the feed-heating interpretation of the question, the heat released by roasting one mole at 1350 K heats the initial stoichiometric mixture from 298 K to \(T_{\mathrm{heat}}\):

\[ C_R(T_{\mathrm{heat}}-298)=448\,980\ \mathrm J. \]

Hence,

\[ T_{\mathrm{heat}} =298+\frac{448\,980}{293.31} =\boxed{1828.74\ \mathrm K\approx1829\ \mathrm K}. \]

Since this exceeds 1350 K, the reaction is self-sustaining.

There is a distinction if the question instead asks for the final temperature after complete adiabatic reaction. The final material consists of one mole each of \(\ce{ZnO}\) and \(\ce{SO2}\), together with six moles of \(\ce{N2}\). Its heat capacity is

\[ \begin{aligned} C_P &=51.64+51.10+6(30.65)\\ &=286.64\ \mathrm{J\,K^{-1}}. \end{aligned} \]

Use an enthalpy path consisting of heating the reactants to 1350 K, reacting at 1350 K, and then heating the products to \(T_{\mathrm{ad}}\). For an adiabatic constant-pressure process,

\[ 308\,562.12-448\,980 +286.64(T_{\mathrm{ad}}-1350)=0. \]

Thus,

\[ \begin{aligned} T_{\mathrm{ad}} &=1350+\frac{448\,980-308\,562.12}{286.64}\\ &=\boxed{1839.88\ \mathrm K\approx1840\ \mathrm K}. \end{aligned} \]

The two calculations describe different quantities: 1829 K is the feed-heating equivalent of the stated reaction heat; 1840 K is the adiabatic final-product temperature.

4.3

Take a basis of one mole of \(\ce{ZnS}\), accompanied by its stoichiometric air and \(n\) moles of inert silica.

At the minimum \(\ce{ZnS}\) content, all the available reaction heat is just sufficient to heat the feed and gangue from 298 to 1350 K. The heat available for silica is therefore

\[ Q_{\mathrm{silica,max}} =448\,980-308\,562.12 =140\,417.88\ \mathrm J. \]

Consequently,

\[ n_{\max} =\frac{140\,417.88\ \mathrm J} {(72.50\ \mathrm{J\,K^{-1}\,mol^{-1}})(1052\ \mathrm K)} =1.84106\ \mathrm{mol}. \]

The corresponding silica mass is

\[ m(\ce{SiO2}) =(1.84106)(60.1) =110.648\ \mathrm g. \]

One mole of \(\ce{ZnS}\) has mass \(97.5\ \mathrm g\), so the limiting mineral contains

\[ 97.5+110.648=208.148\ \mathrm g \]

in total. Its minimum \(\ce{ZnS}\) mass percentage is

\[ 100\,\frac{97.5}{208.148}=46.8417. \]

Therefore,

\[ \boxed{ 46.8\ \mathrm{g\ of\ }\ce{ZnS} \ \mathrm{per}\ 100\ \mathrm{g\ of\ mineral} }. \]

A lower \(\ce{ZnS}\) content would provide insufficient heat to bring the stoichiometric feed and its silica gangue to 1350 K.

The solution was checked against the official solution.