How Much Iron Is Required to Treat Perchloroethene Contamination in Water?

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SUMMARY

The discussion focuses on calculating the amount of iron (Fe) required to treat 5 million gallons of water contaminated with 4.2 mg/L of Perchloroethene (C2Cl4). The balanced chemical reaction is C2Cl4 + 4H+ + 4Fe → C2H4 + 4Cl- + 4Fe2+. To effectively reduce the concentration of C2Cl4 to harmless ethene (C2H4), participants need to determine the total mass of Fe necessary for the reaction, considering that only 20 grams of Fe is reactive in this context.

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  • Chemical reaction balancing
  • Understanding of molarity and concentration calculations
  • Knowledge of stoichiometry
  • Basic principles of water treatment processes
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  • Calculate the total mass of Perchloroethene (C2Cl4) in 5 million gallons of water
  • Research the reactivity of iron in chemical reactions
  • Explore methods for calculating the required dosage of reactants in water treatment
  • Learn about alternative methods for treating Perchloroethene contamination
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Chemistry students, environmental engineers, water treatment professionals, and anyone involved in remediation of chemical contaminants in water.

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1. Homework Statement [/b]

Given:
C2CL4 + Fe \rightarrow C2H4 + CL- + Fe2+

A reservoir contains 5million gallons of water which is contaminated with 4.2mg/L of Perchloroethene(C2CL4). You want too reduce it to harmless ethene(C2H4) by reacting it with Fe. because of this only about 20g of the added Fe is reactive. If you need to treat 5million gallons of water, how many grams of Fe will you need to treat the Perchloroethene(PCE)?





Homework Equations



I first balanced the equation
C2CL4 + 4H+ + 4Fe \rightarrow C2H4 + 4CL- + 4Fe^2+

Concentration of PCE=4.2mg/L
5mill gallons of water = 1.89 x 10^7 L

I do not know where to go from here






The Attempt at a Solution


 
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How many times bigger is the amount of PCE in the 5 million gallon tank than in the elementary reaction? How many milligrams, and therefore moles, of PCE is in the tank? I believe some information is missing related to your "20 grams" comment about the Fe.