Balancing Chemical Equations

Front

What is a balanced chemical equation?

Back

A balanced chemical equation has equal numbers of each type of atom on both sides of the equation, indicating that mass is conserved during a chemical reaction.

Front

What is the purpose of balancing chemical equations?

Back

The purpose is to ensure that the law of conservation of mass is obeyed, meaning that the same number of atoms of each element must be present before and after the reaction.

Front

What is a coefficient in a chemical equation?

Back

A coefficient is a number placed in front of a chemical formula to indicate how many molecules or moles of that substance are involved in the reaction.

Front

What is a subscript in a chemical formula?

Back

A subscript is a small number written after an element symbol that indicates the number of atoms of that element in a molecule.

Front

How do you determine the coefficients needed to balance a chemical equation?

Back

You adjust the coefficients of the reactants and products to ensure that the number of atoms of each element is the same on both sides of the equation.

Front

What is the first step in balancing a chemical equation?

Back

The first step is to write the unbalanced equation and count the number of atoms of each element on both sides.

Front

What does it mean if a chemical equation is unbalanced?

Back

An unbalanced chemical equation does not have the same number of atoms of each element on both sides, violating the law of conservation of mass.

Front

In the equation Mg + 2HCl → MgCl₂ + H₂, what does the '2' represent?

Back

The '2' is a coefficient indicating that two molecules of hydrochloric acid (HCl) are needed to react with one magnesium (Mg) atom.

Front

What is the significance of the arrow in a chemical equation?

Back

The arrow indicates the direction of the reaction, showing that reactants are transformed into products.

Front

How do you balance the equation N₂ + O₂ → NO?

Back

You place a coefficient of 1 in front of N₂, 1 in front of O₂, and 2 in front of NO to balance it: 1, 1, 2.