(HSC Chemistry data page:
http://www.boardofstudies.nsw.edu.au/syllabus_hsc/pdf_doc/chemistry-data-sheet.pdf)
1.20 g of magnesium is
n molecules of magnesium, where
n =
m/
M = 1.20 g/(24.3050 g/mol) ≈ 0.0493725571 mol.
So the number of molecules of O
2 (oxygen gas) required is half of this (as seen from the stoichiometry), i.e. about 0.0246862785 mol.
According to the HSC Chemistry data page, 1 mol of idealised gas at 100 kPa and 25°C has a volume of 24.79 L.
So 0.0246862785 mol in these conditions has a volume of ~ 0.0246862785 mol × 24.79 L/mol ≈ 611.972844 mL.
So we need 611.972844 mL of O
2 gas. Since oxygen is one-fifth the volume of air (given), the required volume of air required is aproximately 5×611.972844 mL = 3.05986422 L, or 3 L (to 1 sig. fig.).