CHE M IC A L E Q U AT I O N S
A ND R E A C T I O N S
D.GRANT
OBJECTIVES
• WRITE BALANCED CHEMICAL EQUATIONS THAT IS OF BOTH IONIC AND MOLECULAR, INCLUDING STATE
SYMBOLS TO REPRESENT CHEMICAL REACTIONS.
• PREDICT WHETHER A COMPOUND IS SOLUBLE OR INSOLUBLE IN WATER.
• TYPES OF CHEMICAL REACTION
• IDENTIFY THE SEVEN MAIN TYPES OF CHEMICAL REACTIONS WITH REFERENCE TO AT LEAST TWO
EXAMPLES.
• WRITE BALANCE EQUATIONS FOR THE DIFFERENT TYPES OF CHEMICAL REACTIONS.
WRITING AND BALANCING EQUATIONS
• A CHEMICAL EQUATION IS A SHORTHAND REPRESENTATION OR SUMMARY OF A REACTION, IN WHICH THE
REACTANTS ARE WRITTEN ON THE LEFT AND THE PRODUCTS ARE SHOWN ON THE RIGHT OF THE ARROW.
• REACTANTS PRODUCTS
WHAT DOES THE CHEMICAL FORMULA OF A
COMPOUND REPRESENT?
• CONSIDER THE FOLLOWING EXAMPLES:
• 2H REPRESENTS TWO ATOMS OF HYDROGEN, NOT BONDED TOGETHER.
• THE 2 IN FRONT OF THE H IS CALLED A COEFFICIENT.
• 2H REPRESENTS TWO MOLECULES OF HYDROGEN, AND IN TOTAL FOUR ATOMS OF HYDROGEN.
2
• CA(OH) CONSISTS OF CA AND 2OH . THE AMOUNT OF EACH ELEMENT IS 1CA, 2O AND 2H ATOMS.
2
2+ -
• 3H SO CONSISTS OF 6H AND 3SO . THE AMOUNT OF EACH ELEMENT IS 6H, 3S AND 12O ATOMS.
2 4
+
4
2-
WHEN WRITING CHEMICAL EQUATIONS:
• A PLUS SIGN (+) SEPARATES EACH REACTANT OR EACH PRODUCT
• THE PHYSICAL STATE OF THE CHEMICAL IS USUALLY WRITTEN AS A SUBSCRIPT. THESE PHYSICAL STATES
ARE: (S) = SOLID, (L) = LIQUID, (G) GAS AND (AQ) = AQUEOUS OR IN SOLUTION (WITH WATER).
WHEN WRITING CHEMICAL EQUATIONS:
BALANCING CHEMICAL EQUATIONS
• IT MUST BE NOTED THAT ALL CHEMICAL REACTIONS OBEY THE LAW OF CONSERVATION OF MASS WHICH
STATES THAT MASS IS NEITHER CREATED NOR DESTROYED IN A CHEMICAL REACTION.
• IN A CHEMICAL REACTION THE MASS OF PRODUCTS IS EQUAL TO THE MASS OF THE REACTANTS.
• THIS LAW MAKES IT POSSIBLE TO MAKE USEFUL MEASUREMENT AND BALANCE CHEMICAL EQUATIONS.
BALANCING CHEMICAL EQUATIONS
• IN ANY ORDINARY CHEMICAL REACTION, ATOMS KEEP THEIR IDENTITY (REMAIN THE SAME) AS THEY ARE
ONLY REARRANGED.
• THIS MEANS THAT THERE MUST BE THE SAME NUMBER OF EACH ATOM AFTER THE REACTION AS THERE
WERE BEFORE IT.
• A BALANCED EQUATION IS ONE THAT HAS THE SAME NUMBER OF ATOMS OF EACH ELEMENT ON BOTH
SIDES OF THE EQUATION.
• WHEN WRITING A CHEMICAL EQUATION FROM A WORD EQUATION IT IS IMPORTANT TO REMEMBER THAT:
• H , N , O , F , CL , BR , AND I ALWAYS EXIST IN NATURE AS DIATOMIC MOLECULES.
2 2 2 2 2 2 2
• A CHEMICAL COMPOUND HAS A SPECIFIC FORMULA WHICH CANNOT BE ALTERED TO HELP WITH
BALANCING AN EQUATION.
STEPS TO BALANCING EQUATIONS
• WRITE DOWN THE CORRECT FORMULA FOR EACH REACTANT AND THE PRODUCT. SEPARATE EACH
REACTANT AND EACH PRODUCT WITH A PLUS SIGN AND THE REACTANTS FROM THE PRODUCTS BY AN
ARROW.
• WRITE THE STATE SYMBOLS FOR EACH REACTANT AND PRODUCT.
• CHOOSE AN ATOM AS YOUR BASIS (USUALLY ONE THAT APPEARS IN ONE COMPOUND ON BOTH SIDES),
THEN OBSERVE AND NOTE THE NUMBER OF THIS ATOM ON BOTH SIDES OF THE EQUATION. POLYATOMIC
IONS OFTEN APPEAR UNCHANGED FROM ONE SIDE TO THE OTHER AND CAN BE BALANCED AS A UNIT.
STEPS TO BALANCING EQUATIONS
• NEXT, MULTIPLY BY A NUMBER (A COEFFICIENT) THAT GIVES EQUAL NUMBERS OF THE BASIS ATOM ON
BOTH SIDES OF THE EQUATION.
• FINALLY, MULTIPLY THE OTHER ATOMS BY NUMBERS THAT GIVES EQUAL NUMBERS ON BOTH SIDES.
• NOTE THAT BALANCING EQUATIONS IS NOT ALWAYS STRAIGHT FORWARD AND SOMETIMES REQUIRE
TRIAL AND ERROR.
IONIC EQUATIONS
• A CHEMICAL EQUATION INVOLVING IONS CAN BE WRITTEN AS A MOLECULAR EQUATION OR AS AN IONIC EQUATION.
• WHEN IONIC COMPOUNDS DISSOLVE IN WATER, THE IONS SEPARATE.
• AN IONIC EQUATION INVOLVES WRITING SOLUBLE SALTS AS INDIVIDUAL IONS WHICH HAVE UNDERGONE CHANGE
DURING THE REACTION.
• THIS SYMBOLIC EQUATION SHOWS ONLY IONS THAT TAKE PART IN THE REACTION. THE IONS THAT DO NOT TAKE
PART ARE CALLED SPECTATOR IONS.
• IF TWO OR MORE IONS CAN FORM EITHER A PRECIPITATE, A COVALENT COMPOUND SUCH AS WATER OR A GAS
THAT CAN ESCAPE, THEN THE REACTION CAN BE WRITTEN AS AN IONIC EQUATION.
• A PRECIPITATE IS AN INSOLUBLE SOLID THAT FORMS WHEN AQUEOUS SOLUTIONS ARE ADDED TOGETHER.
• TO DETERMINE IF A COMPOUND WILL FORM A PRECIPITATE, THE SOLUBILITY OF THE COMPOUND IN
WÁTER NEEDS TO BE KNOWN. THESE ARE KNOWN AS THE SOLUBILITY RULES, AS SHOWN IN THE TABLE
BELOW.
IONIC EQUATIONS
• SHOWS ONLY THE ATOMS OR IONS WHICH CHANGES DURING A REACTION . THESE ARE THE IONS OR
ATOMS THAT ACTUALLY TAKE PART IN THE REACTION.
WHEN WRITING AN IONIC EQUATION:
N.B
• A NET IONIC EQUATION IS AN IONIC EQUATION WITHOUT THE SPECTATOR IONS. IT IS OFTEN REFERRED TO
AS AN IONIC EQUATION.
• IN THE ABOVE EQUATION THE SILVER AND BROMIDE IONS COMBINED TO FORM THE SILVER BROMIDE
COMPOUND LEAVING THE POTASSIUM AND NITRATE ION IN THE SOLUTION.
WEAK ACIDS
• N.B WEAK ACIDS AND WEAK BASES DO NOT COMPLETELY DISASSOCIATE IN WATER
TYPES OF CHEMICAL REACTIONS
TYPES OF CHEMICAL REACTIONS
LIMITATIONS OF A CHEMICAL EQUATION
• THE CHEMICAL EQUATION CAN GIVE A LOT OF INFORMATION ABOUT A REACTION. HOWEVER THERE ARE
CERTAIN THINGS THAT CANNOT BE DEDUCED FROM A CHEMICAL EQUATION.
• 1. THE EQUATION DOES NOT GIVE INFORMATION ABOUT THE REACTION RATE OR HOW LONG IT WILL TAKE
TO COMPLETE.
• 2. SOME REACTIONS ARE IN EQUILIBRIUM AND NEVER GO TO COMPLETION. 3. THE EQUATION DOES NOT
TELL WHETHER THE REACTION IS POSSIBLE OR NOT EVEN IF A BALANCED EQUATION CAN BE WRITTEN. FOR
EXAMPLE; CU (S) + 2HCL (AQ) CUCL2 (AQ) + H2 (G) THIS IS THE BALANCED EQUATION FOR A REACTION
THAT DOES NOT OCCUR IN PRACTICE.
• 3. THE EQUATION DOES NOT TELL WHETHER THE REACTION IS POSSIBLE OR NOT EVEN IF A BALANCED
EQUATION CAN BE WRITTEN. FOR EXAMPLE; CU (S) + 2HCL (AQ) CUCL2 (AQ) + H2 (G) THIS IS THE
BALANCED EQUATION FOR A REACTION THAT DOES NOT OCCUR IN PRACTICE.
