The reaction of an organic acid with an alcohol, in organic solvent, to produce an ester and water is commonly done in the pharmaceutical industry. This reaction is catalyzed by strong acid (usually H2SO4) . A simple example is the reaction of acetic acid with ethyl alcohol to produce ethylacetate and water:
CH3COOH(solv)+CH3CH2OH(solv)⇌CH3COOCH2CH3(solv)+H2O(solv)
where “(solv)” indicates that all reactants and products are in solution but not an aqueous solution. The equilibrium constant for this reaction at 55∘C is 6.68. A pharmaceutical chemist makes up 15.0 L of a solution that is initially 0.275 Min acetic acid and 3.85 Min ethanol.
At equilibrium, how many grams of ethyl acetate are formed?