Hydrazine (N2H4\text{N}_2\text{H}_4N2H4) is used as a rocket propellant. It reacts with oxygen (O2\text{O}_2O2) to produce nitrogen gas (N2\text{N}_2N2) and water vapour (H2O\text{H}_2\text{O}H2O) according to the following chemical equation:
N2H4+O2⟶N2+2H2O \text{N}_2\text{H}_4 + \text{O}_2 \longrightarrow \text{N}_2 + 2\text{H}_2\text{O} N2H4+O2⟶N2+2H2OThe bonds broken and made during this reaction are as follows:
Table 1 shows the bond energies for these bonds.
Table 1
| Bond | Bond energy (kJ/mol) |
|---|---|
| N−H\text{N}-\text{H}N−H | 391 |
| N−N\text{N}-\text{N}N−N | 163 |
| O=O\text{O}=\text{O}O=O | 495 |
| N≡N\text{N}\equiv\text{N}N≡N | 945 |
| O−H\text{O}-\text{H}O−H | 463 |
Calculate the overall energy change for the reaction using the bond energies in Table 1.
Explain why this reaction is exothermic, using values from your calculation.
13 exam-style questions on AQA GCSE Chemistry 5.1 Exothermic and endothermic reactions, covering 5.1.1 Energy transfer during exothermic and endothermic reactions, 5.1.2 Reaction profiles, and 5.1.3 The energy change of reactions (HT only). Each one has a worked solution and a mark scheme showing where the marks go.