According to an article published in 1966 in the Journal of Chemical Education, xenon reacts photochemically with fluorine at room temperature (298 K) to produce XeF₂. A portion of a table showing ratios of gases in the reaction vessel for four experiments is reproduced below. (Assume that atmospheric pressure is exactly 1 atm.) The reaction is as shown:

(a) Draw the Lewis structure of XeF₂ and predict the molecule’s shape.

(b) Calculate the partial pressure of each gas in Experiment 3 if the amounts shown are combined such that the total pressure remains 1 atm.

(c) Calculate the theoretical yield of XeF₂ in Experiment 3.

(d) After the reactants were introduced, the bulb was placed in sunlight. XeF₂ began crystallizing on the inner surface of the bulb about 24 hours later. Compare the rate of this reaction to the rate of precipitation of CaF₂ from solutions of Ca²⁺(aq) and F^–(aq) in the laboratory.

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Xe(g) + F₂(g) → XeF₂(s) 1 Experiment Volume of Xe, in mL at atmospheric pressure Volume of F2, in mL at atmospheric pressure 300. 271 2 350. 260 3 400. 262 450. 183