Science 6.3

Balancing Equations

There are almost always questions about balancing equations on the GED test. If you like math or puzzles, you'll like balancing equations!

Watch this video for an overview of how chemical equations work.

The most important thing to remember about chemical equations is this:

Matter can't be created or destroyed. This means that anytime you have a chemical reaction, matter or stuff doesn't disappear or go anywhere; it just takes a new form.

For example: If you burn a log down to ash, all of the matter in the log didn't disappear. Some of it turned to ash, some of it floated away as smoke, but none of it is gone.

This means that when we have a chemical reaction, matter is going to change form, but not go away. We need to make sure we have the same amount of matter at the beginning and the end.

Here's another video with some practice questions afterwards.

PRACTICE QUESTIONS

More practice!

Answers

The carbon atoms are already the same in the original equation, so after step one, the equation is still CH4+ O2 ---> CO2 + H2O.

The four hydrogen atoms on the left side of the equation are not balanced by the two hydrogen atoms on the right side, so a coefficient must be added to the right side.

After step 2, the coefficient must be added to the right side.

After step 2, the equation is CH4 + 2O2 ---> CO2 + 2H2O

Following step 2, the two oxygen atoms on the left side of the equation are not balanced by the four oxygen atoms on the right side, so a coefficient must be added to the left side.

After step 3, the equation is CH4 + 2O2 ---> CO2 + 2H2O

After step 3, the number of all atoms is equal, so the balanced equation is CH4 + 2O2 ---> Co2 + 2H2O

Try balancing these chemical equations. Email me your answers!

If you can't type the small numbers, that's OK. You can also write them by hand them, take a picture, and email them to me.

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