There are several stages to the production of sulfuric acid in industry - Edexcel - GCSE Chemistry - Question 4 - 2023 - Paper 1

Determine the total mass of products: The reaction produces 2 moles of Cu and 1 mole of SO2:

• Molar mass of Cu = 63.5 g/mol
• Molar mass of SO2 = 64.0 g/mol
• Total mass of products = (2 × 63.5) + (1 × 64.0) = 127.0 + 64.0 = 191.0 g

Find the mass of the desired product (SO2): Mass of SO2 produced = 64.0 g

Calculate the atom economy:

The formula for atom economy is: $\text{Atom Economy} = \left( \frac{\text{Mass of desired product}}{\text{Total mass of products}} \right) \times 100$

Substituting the values: $\text{Atom Economy} = \left( \frac{64.0}{191.0} \right) \times 100 = 33.51\%$

Round to two significant figures: The final answer will be 34%.