Blister copper is refined by stirring molten impure metal with green logs of wood because such a woo β Metallurgy and Isolation of Elements Chemistry Question
Question
Blister copper is refined by stirring molten impure metal with green logs of wood because such a wood liberates hydrocarbon gases (like CH4). This process X is called ......... and the metal contains impurities of Y is .........
π‘ Solution & Explanation
Step 1: The given reactions describe a self-reduction (or auto-reduction) process, where a metal oxide and metal sulfide react to produce the elemental metal. Step 2: Self-reduction occurs spontaneously for less reactive metals like Mercury (Hg) and Lead (Pb), but not for more reactive metals like Zinc (Zn). Step 3: Zinc oxide (ZnO) is highly stable and requires carbon reduction at high temperatures. Thus, 'X' cannot be Zinc, which matches option (c).