Certainly! To balance the chemical equation:
[tex]\[ H_2O \rightarrow H_2 + O_2 \][/tex]
we need to ensure that the number of atoms of each element on the left side (reactants) is equal to the number of atoms of each element on the right side (products).
Let's start by analyzing each element one by one.
1. Hydrogen (H):
- On the left side, we have 2 hydrogen atoms in [tex]\( H_2O \)[/tex].
- On the right side, we have 2 hydrogen atoms in [tex]\( H_2 \)[/tex].
2. Oxygen (O):
- On the left side, we have 1 oxygen atom in [tex]\( H_2O \)[/tex].
- On the right side, we have 2 oxygen atoms in [tex]\( O_2 \)[/tex].
Currently, oxygen atoms are not balanced. We have 1 oxygen atom on the left side and 2 oxygen atoms on the right side. To balance the oxygen atoms, we could adjust the coefficient of [tex]\( H_2O \)[/tex] to 2 on the reactant side and the coefficient of [tex]\( H_2 \)[/tex] on the product side accordingly:
3. Balancing Oxygen:
- If we put a coefficient of 2 in front of [tex]\( H_2O \)[/tex], we get 2 oxygen atoms on the left side.
- To balance it, we need 2 [tex]\( H_2O \)[/tex] molecules:
[tex]\[ 2H_2O \rightarrow 2H_2 + O_2 \][/tex]
Now we have:
- 4 hydrogen atoms on the left (from 2 molecules of [tex]\( H_2O \)[/tex]).
- 4 hydrogen atoms on the right (from 2 molecules of [tex]\( H_2 \)[/tex]).
We can see that the equation is now balanced for both hydrogen and oxygen atoms.
Thus, the coefficients that balance the chemical equation are:
- Coefficient of [tex]\( H_2O \)[/tex] is 2
- Coefficient of [tex]\( H_2 \)[/tex] is 2
- Coefficient of [tex]\( O_2 \)[/tex] is 1
So, the balanced chemical equation is:
[tex]\[ 2H_2O \rightarrow 2H_2 + O_2 \][/tex]
Here are the coefficients in the required format:
[tex]\[ (\mathbf{2}) H_2O \rightarrow (\mathbf{2}) H_2 + (\mathbf{1}) O_2 \][/tex]
