Lesson 1: Extent, Yield,

Conversion, and
Selectivity
ENGR. KRISTOPHER RAY S. PAMINTUAN, M.SC.
Review
The limiting reactant dictates the maximum amount of product that
can be formed
It is the basis of the theoretical amount (ntheo) – the maximum
product that can be produced from a certain amount of reactants, or
he maximum amount of reactant consumed.
Example: What is the theoretical amount of ammonia that can be
produced by reacting 28 g of N2 and 8 g of H2?
Percent Excess
The LR is the basis of the theoretical amount, while the percent
excess is based on the excess reactant.
𝑛𝐸𝑅,𝑓𝑒𝑒𝑑 −𝑛𝐸𝑅,𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑜
% 𝑒𝑥𝑐𝑒𝑠𝑠 = × 100%
𝑛𝐸𝑅,𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑜

Example: What is the percent excess of the ER in the previous

example?
Extent of Reaction,E
Tells us the amount of a reactant/product that is
consumed/produced
Consider this example reaction:
C2H2 + 2H2  C2H6
We can write balances as:
Extent of Reaction,E
Therefore, we can summarize values for the extent of reaction as:
𝑛𝑓 −𝑛𝑜
E=
𝜈𝑖
Example: Consider the reaction:
CH4 + 2O2  CO2 + 2H2O
If we start with 1 mol of CH4 and 3 mol of O2 in a closed vessel, 0.75
mol of CO2 is produced. Determine the final composition using the
extent of reaction.
Yield
Refers to the relative amount produced compared to the theoretical
amount.
The theoretical yield is ntheo
The actual yield is the actual amount produced during the reaction
𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑢𝑎𝑙 𝑦𝑖𝑒𝑙𝑑
%𝑦𝑖𝑒𝑙𝑑 = × 100%
𝑛𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑜
Conversion
This tells us how much reactant was consumed; 100% conversion
means that the LR is completely exhausted.
Normally pertains to the limiting reactant
𝑚𝑜𝑙𝑒𝑠 𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑛𝑓 −𝑛𝑜
𝑓= =
𝑚𝑜𝑙𝑒𝑠 𝑓𝑒𝑑 𝑛𝑜
Example: For the oxidation of SO2, the fractional conversion of SO2 to
SO3 is 0.65. Determine the outlet composition of a reactor if the inlet
contains 30% SO2 and the balance O2.
2SO2 + O2  2SO3
Selectivity
It is common for industrial processes to have more than one reaction
occurring simultaneously
The selectivity gives us a ratio of the desired and the undesired
products. In an industrial process, we want higher values of
selectivity.
𝑚𝑜𝑙𝑒𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑑𝑒𝑠𝑖𝑟𝑒𝑑 𝑝𝑟𝑜𝑑𝑢𝑐𝑡 𝑛𝐷
𝑆= =
𝑚𝑜𝑙𝑒𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑢𝑛𝑑𝑒𝑠𝑖𝑟𝑒𝑑 𝑝𝑟𝑜𝑑𝑢𝑐𝑡 𝑛𝑈
Selectivity
Example: Ethylene is produced by the dehydrogenation of ethane:
C2H6  C2H4 + H2
However, the produced ethylene can further react with excess
ethane to form propylene and methane:
C2H4 + C2H6  C3H6 + CH4
If 100 mol/min of ethane enters a reactor, the conversion of ethane
to ethylene is 0.72 and the selectivity is 3.5, determine the outlet
composition of the reactor.
Examples
1. Acrylonitrile is produced in the reaction of propylene, ammonia,
and oxygen:
C3H6 + NH3 + O2  C3H3N + H2O
The feed contains 10% propylene, 12% ammonia, and 78% air. A
fractional conversion of 30% of the LR is achieved. Determine ntheo of
propylene, %excess of the ER, and the composition of the outlet
stream.