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How To Balance Chemical Equations

Chemical equations represent chemical reactions symbolically. They show the reactants on the left and products on the right, connected by an arrow. To balance equations, the number of atoms of each element must be equal on both sides according to the law of conservation of mass. Balancing involves writing atom counts, selecting a single element to start with, and using coefficients to adjust atom counts until all elements are balanced. Determining products from reactants involves identifying ions, switching them to form new compounds while maintaining charge balance, and writing the full equation.

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128 views2 pages

How To Balance Chemical Equations

Chemical equations represent chemical reactions symbolically. They show the reactants on the left and products on the right, connected by an arrow. To balance equations, the number of atoms of each element must be equal on both sides according to the law of conservation of mass. Balancing involves writing atom counts, selecting a single element to start with, and using coefficients to adjust atom counts until all elements are balanced. Determining products from reactants involves identifying ions, switching them to form new compounds while maintaining charge balance, and writing the full equation.

Uploaded by

jen st john
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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How to Balance Chemical Equations

Chemical equation is a written symbolic representation of a chemical reaction (The symbols are the elemental letter or letters representing that element). The
reactant chemical(s) are given on the left-hand side and the product chemical(s) on the right-hand side. The two are connected with an arrow leading from the left
to the right, symbolizing the reaction. The law of conservation of mass states that no atoms can be created or destroyed in a chemical reaction, so the number of
atoms that are present in the reactants has to balance the number of atoms that are present in the products. Follow this guide to learn how to balance chemical
equations differently
1) Write down your given equation.
For this example, you will use:
C3H8 + O2 --> H2O + CO2
This reaction occurs when propane (C3H8) is burned in the presence of oxygen to produce water and
carbon dioxide.

2.) Write down the number of atoms per element.


Do this for each side of the equation. Look at the subscripts next to each atom to find the number of
atoms in the equation. When writing it out, it's a good idea to connect it back to the original equation,
noting how each element appears.[2]

 For example, you have 3 oxygen atoms on the right side, but that total results from addition.

 Left side: 3 carbon (C3), 8 hydrogen (H8) and 2 oxygen (O2).

 Right side: 1 carbon (C), 2 hydrogen (H2) and 3 oxygen (O + O2).

3.) Start with single elements.

If you have more than one element left to balance, select the element that appears in only a single
molecule of reactants and in only a single molecule of products. This means that you will need to
balance the carbon atoms first

4.) Use a coefficient to balance the single carbon atom.


Add a coefficient to the single carbon atom on the right of the equation to balance it with the 3 carbon
atoms on the left of the equation.[5]

 C3H8 + O2 --> H2O + 3CO2

 The coefficient 3 in front of carbon on the right side indicates 3 carbon atoms just as the

subscript 3 on the left side indicates 3 carbon atoms.

 In a chemical equation, you can change coefficients, but you must never alter the subscripts.

5.) Balance the hydrogen atoms next. Since you have balanced all atoms besides the hydrogen and oxygen, you can address the
hydrogen atoms. You have 8 on the left side. So you'll need 8 on the right side. Use a coefficient to achieve this. [6]

C3H8 + O2 --> 4H2O + 3CO2

On the right side, you now added a 4 as the coefficient because the subscript showed that you already had 2 hydrogen atoms.

When you multiply the coefficient 4 times by the subscript 2, you end up with 8.

The other 6 atoms of oxygen come from 3CO2.(3x2=6 atoms of oxygen+ the other 4=10)

MOLE
Mole – standard unit of measuement in chemistry that take into account the different element in a chemical compound.

Calculating Molecular Mass: Converting g to moles:

Molar mass = # of atom X atomic weight 𝑔𝑟𝑎𝑚𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑑


𝑚𝑜𝑙𝑒𝑠 =
𝑚𝑜𝑙𝑎𝑟 𝑚𝑎𝑠𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑑
** g/mol unit to be use**
Symbols Used in Chemical Equations

Symbol Description

+ used to separate multiple reactants or products

→ yield sign; separates reactants from products

⇌ replaces the yield sign for reversible reactions that reach equilibrium

formula written above the arrow is used as a catalyst in the reaction

triangle indicates that the reaction is being heated

(s) reactant or product in the solid state

(l) reactant or product in the liquid state

(g) reactant or product in the gas state

(aq) reactant or product in an aqueous solution (dissolved in water)

Determining the Products Given Reactants


1.Identify all of the cations and anions in the reactants. In a basic double
replacement equation you will have 2 cations and 2 anions. The general equation
takes the form of AB + CD → AD + CB, where A and C are cations and B and D
are anions. You also want to determine the charges of each ion.[11]

 For example: AgNO3 + NaCl → ?


 The cations are Ag+1 and Na+1. The anions are NO31- and Cl1-.

2Switch the ions to build the products. Once you have identified all of the
ions and their charges, rearrange them so that the first cation is now paired with
the second anion, and the second cation is now paired with the first anion.
Remember the equation: AB + CD → AD + CB.[12]

 Remember to balance the charges when forming new compounds.


 For example: AgNO3 + NaCl → ?
 Ag+1 now pairs with Cl1- to form AgCl.
 Na+1 now pairs with NO31- to form NaNO3.

3. Write the full equation. After writing the products that will form in the
equation, you can write the whole equation with both products and
reactants. Keep the reactants on the left side of the equation and write the
new products on the right side with a plus sign between them.[13]

 For example: AgNO3 + NaCl --> ?


 AgNO3 + NaCl --> AgCl + NaNO3

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