Chemical Equation vs Chemical Reaction
A chemical equation is a written representation of the process that occurs in a chemical reaction. A chemical equation is written with the reactants on the left side of an arrow and the products of the chemical reaction on the right side of the equation.
The head of the arrow typically points toward the right or toward the product side of the equation, although reactions may indicate equilibrium with the reaction proceeding in both directions simultaneously.
The elements in an equation are denoted using their symbols. Coefficients next to the symbols indicate the stoichiometric numbers. Subscripts are used to indicate the number of atoms of an element present in a chemical species.
An example of a chemical equation may be seen in the combustion of methane:
CH4 + 2 O2 → CO2 + 2 H2O
Participants in the Chemical Reaction: Element Symbols
You'll need to know the symbols for the elements to understand what is taking place in a chemical reaction. In this reaction, C is carbon, H is hydrogen and O is oxygen.
Left Side of Reaction: Reactants
The reactants in this chemical reaction are methane and oxygen: CH4 and O2.
Right Side of Reaction: Products
The products of this reaction are carbon dioxide and water: CO2 and H2O.
Direction of Reaction: Arrow
It is the convention to right the reactants on the lefthand side of the chemical equation and the products on the righthand side of the chemical equation. The arrow between the reactants and products should point from left to right or should point both directions if the reaction is proceeding both ways (this is common).
If your arrow points from right to left, it's a good idea to re-write the equation the conventional way.
No comments:
Post a Comment