Imagine you are making potato veg, and you have added 6 tomatoes and 6 chilies but just

one potato?
will you get the veg ?

Stoichiometry is the branch of chemistry that deals with the quantitative relationships between
reactants and products in a chemical reaction. It helps chemists determine the proportions of
substances required or produced in reactions, ensuring the balanced use of materials.

The key aspects of stoichiometry include:

1. Balanced Equations: A chemical equation must be balanced so that the number of

2. Mole Ratios: From the balanced equation, the ratio of moles of reactants and products
is derived, allowing for the calculation of how much of each is needed or produced.

Mole:

A mole is a way to count really tiny things like atoms or molecules. It’s like a "chemist's dozen," but
instead of 12, a mole is 6.022 × 10²³ (which is a very big number).

Molar Mass:

Molar mass is how much one mole of a substance weighs. It’s measured in grams per mole (g/mol).
Every substance has its own molar mass, based on how heavy its atoms or molecules are.

Example:

-Water (H₂O) has a molar mass of 18 grams per mole. This means if you have 18 grams of water, you
have 1 mole (or 6.022 × 10²³ molecules) of water.

The molar mass of water (H₂O) is 18 grams per mole. This is calculated by adding the atomic masses of 2
hydrogen atoms (1 gram each) and 1 oxygen atom (16 grams), giving a total of 18 grams per mole.

3. Conversions: Stoichiometry allows conversion between grams, moles, liters (for gases),
and particles using the molar mass and Avogadro’s number.

4. Limiting Reactant: It identifies the reactant that will be used up first in a reaction,
determining the maximum amount of product that can be formed.

In essence, stoichiometry helps predict how much product can be made from given quantities of
reactants or how much of a reactant is needed for a desired amount of product.

Real-Life Example of Stoichiometry:

Consider the reaction of hydrogen and oxygen to form water:

2 H 2+ O 2 → 2 H 2 O

What is 2H AND H2 ?

1.H₂ (Hydrogen Gas):

- This refers to a molecule made up of two hydrogen atoms bonded together. It's called diatomic
hydrogen, and it's the most common form of hydrogen found in nature, existing as a gas.

2. 2H (Two Atoms of Hydrogen):

- This simply indicates two individual hydrogen atoms. It is not a molecule but just two separate
hydrogen atoms. The number "2" indicates the quantity of hydrogen atoms.

In summary:

- H₂ is a molecule made up of two hydrogen atoms bonded together.

- 2H means two separate hydrogen atoms that are not bonded together.

2H₂ represents two molecules of hydrogen gas. Each H₂ molecule consists of two hydrogen atoms
bonded together, so 2H₂ means there are two H₂ molecules or a total of four hydrogen atoms arranged
as two separate H₂ molecules.

 H₂: One molecule of hydrogen gas, consisting of two hydrogen atoms.

 2H₂: Two hydrogen gas molecules, each made of two hydrogen atoms, so in total, it represents
four hydrogen atoms (2 × H₂ = 4 H).

Example in Chemical Reactions:

In a reaction, you might see something like this:

2 H 2+ O 2 → 2 H 2 O

This means that two molecules of hydrogen gas (2H₂) react with one molecule of oxygen gas (O₂) to
produce two molecules of water (2H₂O).
This equation shows that 2 molecules of hydrogen (H₂) react with 1 molecule of oxygen (O₂) to produce 2
molecules of water (H₂O). If you have 4 moles of hydrogen, you’ll need 2 moles of oxygen to produce 4
moles of water, based on the mole ratio from the balanced equation.

In IGCSE Chemistry, students are expected to grasp stoichiometry at a basic level, focusing on
understanding chemical reactions quantitatively. Here’s what they should know about stoichiometry:

Core Concepts in Stoichiometry:

1. Balancing Chemical Equations: Students should know how to balance chemical

2. Moles and Molar Mass: Understanding the concept of the mole as a unit for counting
particles and calculating molar masses from the periodic table.

3. Mole Ratios: Using the coefficients in a balanced equation to determine the mole ratio
between reactants and products. This allows students to predict how much of each substance is required
or produced in a reaction.

4. Conversions: They should be able to perform calculations to convert between grams,

• Molar mass (grams to moles)

• Avogadro’s number (particles to moles)

• Ideal gas equation for gases

5. Limiting Reactant: The concept of a limiting reactant, where one reactant is used up first,
limiting the amount of product that can form.

Example:

A simple reaction like the formation of water:

2 H 2+ O 2 → 2 H 2 O
In this reaction, students should:

• Balance the equation (which is already balanced here).

• Understand that 2 moles of hydrogen react with 1 mole of oxygen to form 2 moles of
water.

• Use this ratio to calculate how much oxygen is needed if, for example, you have 4 moles
of hydrogen.

Practical Application:

Students should be comfortable solving problems such as:

• If you have 10 grams of H₂, how many grams of H₂O can be produced?

• If 3 moles of O₂ react, how many moles of H₂O are formed?