Question

How do you calculate RQ?

Answer 1

Respiratory Quotient:

1. Respiratory Quotient (RQ) is the ratio of volumes of carbon dioxide produced to oxygen consumed during respiration.
2. RQ = $\frac{\mathrm{volume}\mathrm{of}{\mathrm{CO}}_2\mathrm{evolved}}{\mathrm{volume}\mathrm{of}{\mathrm{O}}_2\mathrm{consumed}}$
   For calculation, the CO2 and O2 must be given in the same units.
3. The value of RQ depends on the type of respiratory substrate.
   eg: The value of RQ is 1 for carbohydrates. It can be shown by the chemical equation for the oxidation of glucose.
   $C_6{H}_{12}{O}_6+6O_2\to 6C{O}_2+6H_{2}O+\mathrm{Energy}$
   $\mathrm{RQ}=\frac{6C{O}_2}{6O_2}=1.0$