Question

Calculate the maximum amount of work that can be obtained from the combustion of 1.00 moles of ethane, CH3CH3(g), at 25 °C and standard conditions.

Answer 1

This will be equal to the change in Gibbs free energy for the combustion reaction, which you can most easily calculate by looking up the standard formation free energies -- NOT the formation enthalpies! -- and applying Hess's Law.