QJEEM23Chd2e8: JEE Main 2023 Chemistry - Class 11 JEEM23Chd2e8 Solution: Given below are two reactions, involved in the commercial…

These reactions are part of the water-gas shift reaction used in the industrial production of hydrogen. The first reaction is the endothermic steam reforming of coal (carbon), while the second reaction is the exothermic water-gas shift reaction.

1. Carbon reacts with steam at high temperatures (around 1000°C or 1273 K) to form carbon monoxide and hydrogen:
   
   C(s) + H $_2$ O(g) $\xrightarrow[T_1]{}$ CO(g) + H $_2$ (g)




2. Then carbon monoxide reacts with steam in the presence of a catalyst to produce carbon dioxide and more hydrogen:
   
   CO(g) + H $_2$ O(g) $\xrightarrow[Catalyst]{[T_2]}$ CO $_2$ (g) + H $_2$ (g)

Since the first reaction is endothermic (absorbs heat), it requires a higher temperature to proceed than the second reaction, which is exothermic (releases heat). Therefore, the temperature T $_1$ should be higher than T $_2$ .