Using the metal activity series, the metal that can liberate hydrogen gas from steam is?
Answer Details
The metal that can liberate hydrogen gas from steam is iron.
The metal activity series is a list of metals in order of their reactivity, with the most reactive metals at the top and the least reactive metals at the bottom. When a metal is placed in a solution of steam (water vapor), the metal will react with the steam if it is more reactive than hydrogen.
In this case, iron is more reactive than hydrogen, so it can displace hydrogen from the steam to form hydrogen gas. This reaction can be represented by the equation:
Fe + H2O (steam) → FeO (iron oxide) + H2 (hydrogen gas)
So, when steam is passed over iron, hydrogen gas is liberated and iron oxide is formed.