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Dihydrogen MCQ - Practice Questions with Answers

Edited By admin | Updated on Sep 25, 2023 25:23 PM | #NEET

Quick Facts

  • Preparation of Dihydrogen is considered one the most difficult concept.

  • Uses of Hydrogen is considered one of the most asked concept.

  • 17 Questions around this concept.

Concepts Covered - 0

Preparation of Dihydrogen

Preparation of Hydrogen: There are a number of methods for preparing dihydrogen from metals and metal hydrides.

  • Laborartory Method
    • It is usually prepared by the reaction of granulated zinc with dilute hydrochloric acid.
                                         Zn + 2H+ → Zn2+ + H2
    • It can also be prepared by the reaction of zinc with aqueous alkali.
      Zn + 2NaOH → Na2ZnO2 + H2
  • Commercial preparation method
    • The electrolysis of acidified water using platinum electrodes gives hydrogen.

      Cathode Reaction
      \mathrm{2H^{+}\: +\: 2e\: \rightarrow \: H_{2}}


      Anode Reaction
      \mathrm{H_{2}O\: -\: 2e^{-}\: \rightarrow 2H^{+}\: +\: 1/2O_{2}}


      Hydrogen gas is formed at the cathode while oxygen is formed at the anode.
    • It is obtained as a byproduct in the manufacture of sodium hydroxide and chlorine by the electrolysis of brine solution. During electrolysis, the reactions that take place are:

    • At \;Anode:2Cl^{-}\rightarrow Cl_{2}+2e^{-}

      At \:cathode:2H_{2}O(l)+2e^{-}\rightarrow H_{2}(g)+2OH^{-}(aq)

      Overall \;reaction\;is

      2Na^{+}(aq)+2Cl^{-}(aq)+2H_{2}O(l)\rightarrow Cl_{2}(g)+H_{2}(g)+2Na^{+}(aq)+2OH_{-}(aq)

    • High purity (>99.95%) dihydrogen is obtained by electrolyzing warm aqueous barium hydroxide solution between nickel electrodes.
    • By the reaction of Zn with aqueous alkali :  Hydrogen can also be prepared by the reaction of zinc with aqueous alkali.

    • Water Gas :  Reaction of steam on hydrocarbons or coke at high temperatures in the presence of catalyst yields hydrogen.

      C_{n}H_{2n+2}+nH_{2}O\xrightarrow[Ni]{1270K}nCO+(2n+1)H_{2}

      The mixture of CO and H2 is called water gas. As this mixture of CO and H2 is used for the synthesis of methanol and a number of hydrocarbons, it is also called synthesis gas or 'syngas'.

      The process of producing 'syngas' from coal is called 'coal gasification'.

      C+H_{2}O\overset{1270K}{\rightarrow}CO+H_{2}

    • Water Gas Shift Reaction :  The production of dihydrogen can be increased by reacting carbon monoxide of syngas mixtures with steam in the presence of iron chromate as catalyst.

      CO(g)+H_2O(g) \xrightarrow[catalyst]{673K}CO_2(g)+H_2(g)

      This is called water-gas shift reaction.

Physical Properties of Hydrogen

Physical Properties of Hydrogen: Dihydrogen is a colourless, odourless, tasteless, combustible gas. It is lighter than air and insoluble in water.

The list of physical of Hydrogen and its isotopes are mentioned in the table below. Please have a look at it.

H-H bond Enthalpy :  The H–H bond dissociation enthalpy is the highest for a single bond between two atoms of any element. It is because of this factor that the dissociation of dihydrogen into its atoms is only ~0.081% around 2000K which increases to 95.5% at 5000K. Also, it is relatively inert at room temperature due to the high H–H bond enthalpy.

Chemical Properties of Hydrogen

Chemical Properties of Dihydrogen: Dihydrogen accomplishes reactions by

(i) loss of the only electron to give H+

(ii) gain of an electron to form H–

(iii) sharing electrons to form a single covalent bond.

The chemistry of dihydrogen can be illustrated by the following reactions:

  • Reaction with halogens: It reacts with halogens, X2 to give hydrogen halides, HX.

H_{2}(g)+X_{2}(g)\rightarrow 2HX(g) \;\;(X=F,Cl,Br,I)

  • Reaction with dinitrogen: With dinitrogen it forms ammonia.  

 3H_2(g)+N_2(g)\xrightarrow[Fe]{673K, 200atm}2NH_3(g);      \Delta H^\circleddash =-92.6\; kj\;mol^{-1}

             This is the method for the manufacture of ammonia by the Haber process.

  • Reaction with dioxygen: It reacts with dioxygen to form water. The reaction is highly exothermic.

2 \mathrm{H}_{2}(\mathrm{g})+\mathrm{O}_{2}(\mathrm{g}) \quad \rightarrow \quad 2 \mathrm{H}_{2} \mathrm{O}(\mathrm{I})     \Delta H^{-}=-285.9 \;KJ/mol

  • Reactions with metals: With many metals it combines at a high temperature to yield the corresponding hydrides

    H_{2}(g)+2M(g)\rightarrow 2MH(s)\;where\;M\;is\;an\;alkali\;metal

  • Hydrogen reacts with many organic compounds in the presence of catalysts to give useful hydrogenated products of commercial importance. For example :

  • Hydrogenation of vegetable oils using nickel as catalyst gives edible fats (margarine and vanaspati ghee)
  • Hydroformylation of olefins yields aldehydes which further undergo reduction to give alcohols.

H_{2}+ RCH_{2}CH_{2}CHO\rightarrow RCH_{2}CH_{2}CH_{2}OH

H_{2}+CO+RCH=CH_{2}\rightarrow RCH_{2}CH_{2}CHO

 

 

 

Uses of Hydrogen

The various uses of dihydrogen are as follows:

  • The largest single use of dihydrogen is in the synthesis of ammonia which is used in the manufacture of nitric acid and nitrogenous fertilizers.
  • Dihydrogen is used in the manufacture of vanaspati fat by the hydrogenation of polyunsaturated vegetable oils like soybean, cotton seeds etc.
  • It is used in the manufacture of bulk organic chemicals, particularly methanol.
    \mathrm{CO}(\mathrm{g})+2 \mathrm{H}_{2}(\mathrm{g}) \overset{\mathrm{cobalt}}{\rightarrow}\mathrm{CH}_{3} \mathrm{OH}(\mathrm{l})
  • It is widely used for the manufacture of metal hydrides.
  • It is used for the preparation of hydrogen chloride, a highly useful chemical.
  • In metallurgical processes, it is used to reduce heavy metal oxides to metals.
  • It is used as a rocket fuel in space research.
  • Dihydrogen is used in fuel cells for generating electrical energy. It has many advantages over the conventional fossil fuels and electric power.
ortho and para-Hydrogen

Ortho and Para hydrogens:

In a molecule of hydrogen when the spin of both H-atoms is in the same direction, they are known as ortho hydrogen.

In a molecule of hydrogen when the spin of both H-atoms is in the opposite direction, they are known as para hydrogen.

 

 

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