Balance the following equations:
(i) HgO ⇢ Hg + O2
(ii) C4H10 (g) + O2 (g) ⇢ CO2 (g) + H2O (l)
(iii) BaCl2 (aq) + Al2(SO4)3 (aq) ⇢ AlCl3 (aq) +BaSO4 (aq)
Balanced chemical equations:
The reaction must be balanced in order to satisfy the law of conservation of mass that states the number of atoms on both sides of the reaction must be equal.
To balance the chemical equation:
(i) HgO ⇢ Hg + O2
Reactant Side | Product Side |
Hg = 1 | Hg = 1 |
O = 1 | O = 2 |
The balanced equation is given as:
2HgO ⇢ 2Hg + O2
(ii) C4H10 (g) + O2 (g) ⇢ CO2 (g) + H2O (l)
Reactant Side | Product Side |
C = 4 | C = 1 |
H = 10 | H = 2 |
O = 2 | O = 3 |
The balanced equation is given as:
2C4H10 (g) + 13O2 (g) ⇢ 8CO2 (g) + 10H2O (l)
(iii) BaCl2 (aq) + Al2(SO4)3 (aq) ⇢ AlCl3 (aq) +BaSO4 (aq)
Reactant Side | Product Side |
Ba = 1 | Ba = 1 |
Cl = 2 | Cl = 3 |
Al = 2 | Al = 1 |
S = 3 | S = 1 |
O = 12 | O = 4 |
The balanced reaction is given as:
3BaCl2 (aq) + Al2(SO4)3 (aq) ⇢ 2AlCl3 (aq) + 3BaSO4 (aq)