Question

What happens when a metal above hydrogen in the reactivity series reacts with dilute acid? Explain with an example.

Answer 1

The Reaction of Metals with Dilute Acid.

Potassium, sodium, lithium and calcium all react violently
with dilute sulfuric acid and dilute hydrochloric acid.
It is dangerous to put these metals into an acid.
The reaction is similar to the reaction with water,
forming the metal salt (either sulfate or chloride) plus H2(g).

For example

sodium + hydrochloric acid sodium chloride + hydrogen.
2Na(s) + 2HCl(aq) 2NaCl(aq) + H2(g)

Magnesium, aluminium, zinc, iron, tin and lead
react safely with dilute acid.
Magnesium is the fastest and lead is the slowest of the six.

magnesium + sulfuric acid magnesium sulfate + hydrogen.
Mg(s) + H2SO4(aq) MgSO4(aq) + H2(g)

magnesium + hydrochloric acid magnesium chloride + hydrogen.
Mg(s) + 2HCl(aq) MgCl2(aq) + H2(g)
(see how to measure the rate of the reaction)

aluminium + hydrochloric acid aluminium chloride + hydrogen.
2Al(s) + 6HCl(aq) 2AlCl3(aq) + 3H2(g)

zinc + sulfuric acid zinc sulfate + hydrogen.
Zn(s) + H2SO4(aq) ZnSO4(aq) + H2(g)

iron + hydrochloric acid iron(II) chloride + hydrogen.
Fe(s) + 2HCl(aq) FeCl2(aq) + H2(g)

tin + hydrochloric acid tin(II) chloride + hydrogen.
Sn(s) + 2HCl(aq) SnCl2(aq) + H2(g)

lead + sulfuric acid lead sulfate + hydrogen.
Pb(s) + H2SO4(aq) PbSO4(s) + H2(g)


The reaction of zinc with sulfuric acid is often used to
make a small amount of hydrogen in the laboratory - see moles.
The reaction is slow at room temperature
but its rate can be increased by the

Answer 2

Heya
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In a reactivity series, the most reactive element is placed at the top and the least reactive element at the bottom. More reactive metals have a greater tendency to lose electrons and form positive ions.A reactivity series of metals could include any elements. For example:A good way to remember the order of a reactivity series of metals is to use the first letter of each one to make up a silly sentence. For example: People Say Little Children Make A Zebra Ill Constantly Sniffing Giraffes.Observations of the way that these elements react with water, acidsand steam enable us to put them into this series.The tables show how the elements react with water and dilute acids:ElementReaction with waterPotassiumViolentlySodiumVery quicklyLithiumQuicklyCalciumMore slowlyElementReaction with dilute acidsCalciumVery quicklyMagnesiumQuicklyZincMore slowlyIronMore slowly than zincCopperVery slowlySilverBarely reactsGoldDoes not reactNote that aluminium can be difficult to place in the correct position in the reactivity series during these experiments. This is because its protective aluminium oxide layer makes it appear to be less reactive than it really is. When this layer is removed, the observations are more reliable.Non-metals in the reactivity seriesIt is useful to place carbon and hydrogen into the reactivity series because these elements can be used to extract metals.Here is the reactivity series including carbon and hydrogen:Note that zinc and iron can be displaced from their oxides using carbon but not using hydrogen. However, copper can be extracted using carbon or hydrogen.