All chemical reactions can be placed into one of six categories.

Here they are, in

no particular order:
1) Combustion: A combustion reaction is when oxygen combines with another
compound to form water and carbon dioxide. These reactions are exothermic, meaning
they produce heat. An example of this kind of reaction is the burning of napthalene:
C10H8 + 12 O2 ---> 10 CO2 + 4 H2O

2) Synthesis: A synthesis reaction is when two or more simple compounds combine to

form a more complicated one. These reactions come in the general form of:
A + B ---> AB
One example of a synthesis reaction is the combination of iron and sulfur to form iron
(II) sulfide:
8 Fe + S8 ---> 8 FeS

3) Decomposition: A decomposition reaction is the opposite of a synthesis reaction - a

complex molecule breaks down to make simpler ones. These reactions come in the
general form:
AB ---> A + B
One example of a decomposition reaction is the electrolysis of water to make oxygen
and hydrogen gas:
2 H2O ---> 2 H2 + O2

4) Single displacement: This is when one element trades places with another element
in a compound. These reactions come in the general form of:
A + BC ---> AC + B
One example of a single displacement reaction is when magnesium replaces hydrogen
in water to make magnesium hydroxide and hydrogen gas:
Mg + 2 H2O ---> Mg(OH)2 + H2

5) Double displacement: This is when the anions and cations of two different
molecules switch places, forming two entirely different compounds. These reactions are
in the general form:
AB + CD ---> AD + CB
One example of a double displacement reaction is the reaction of lead (II) nitrate with
potassium iodide to form lead (II) iodide and potassium nitrate:
Pb(NO3)2 + 2 KI ---> PbI2 + 2 KNO3

6) Acid-base: This is a special kind of double displacement reaction that takes place
when an acid and base react with each other. The H + ion in the acid reacts with
the OH- ion in the base, causing the formation of water. Generally, the product of this
reaction is some ionic salt and water:
HA + BOH ---> H2O + BA
One example of an acid-base reaction is the reaction of hydrobromic acid (HBr) with
sodium hydroxide:
HBr + NaOH ---> NaBr + H2O

Follow this series of questions. When you can answer "yes" to a question, then stop!
1) Does your reaction have oxygen as one of it's reactants and carbon dioxide
and water as products? If yes, then it's a combustion reaction
2) Does your reaction have two (or more) chemicals combining to form one
chemical? If yes, then it's a synthesis reaction
3) Does your reaction have one large molecule falling apart to make several small
ones? If yes, then it's a decomposition reaction
4) Does your reaction have any molecules that contain only one element? If yes,
then it's a single displacement reaction
5) Does your reaction have water as one of the products? If yes, then it's an acidbase reaction
6) If you haven't answered "yes" to any of the questions above, then you've got a
double displacement reaction

List what type the following reactions are:

1) NaOH + KNO3 --> NaNO3 + KOH
2) CH4 + 2 O2 --> CO2 + 2 H2O
3) 2 Fe + 6 NaBr --> 2 FeBr3 + 6 Na
4) CaSO4 + Mg(OH)2 --> Ca(OH)2 + MgSO4
5) NH4OH + HBr --> H2O + NH4Br
6) Pb + O2 --> PbO2
7) Na2CO3 --> Na2O + CO2

Balancing Equations Worksheet

1)

_____ Al(NO3)3 + _____ (NH4)3PO4 _____AlPO4 + _____ NH4NO3

2)

_____ AgF + _____ CaCl2 _____ AgCl + _____ CaF2

3)

_____ ZnBr2 + _____ Pb(NO2)2 _____ Zn(NO2)2 + _____ PbBr2

4)

_____ C2H4O2 + _____ O2 _____ CO2 + _____ H2O

5)

_____ Ca + _____ CuF2 _____ CaF2 + _____ Cu

6)

_____ H2SO4 + _____ B(OH)3 _____ B2(SO4)3 + _____ H2O

7)

_____ S8 + _____ O2 _____ SO2

8)

_____ H2O2 _____ O2 + _____ H2O

9)

_____ K + _____ F2 _____ KF

10)

_____ AgNO3 + _____ Ga _____ Ag + _____ Ga(NO3)3

11)

_____ N2 + _____ H2 _____ NH3

12)

_____ NaCl + _____ H2SO4 _____ NaHSO4 + _____ HCl

13)

_____ KMnO4 _____ K2MnO4 + _____ MnO2 + _____ O2

14)

_____ Fe + _____ AgNO3 _____ Fe(NO3)2 + _____ Ag

15)

_____ Li2SO4 + _____ K3PO4 _____ Li3PO4 + _____ K2SO4

Tisa
Balancing Equations Answers
1)

1 Al(NO3)3 + 1 (NH4)3PO4 1 AlPO4 + 3 NH4NO3

2)

2 AgF + 1 CaCl2 2 AgCl + 1 CaF2

3)

1 ZnBr2 + 1 Pb(NO2)2 1 Zn(NO2)2 + 1 PbBr2

4)

1 C2H4O2 + 2 O2 2 CO2 + 2 H2O

5)

1 Ca + 1 CuF2 1 CaF2 + 1 Cu

6)

3 H2SO4 + 2 B(OH)3 1 B2(SO4)3 + 6 H2O

7)

1 S8 + 8 O2 8 SO2

8)

2 H2O2 1 O2 + 2 H2O

9)

2 K + 1 F2 2 KF

10)

3 AgNO3 + 1 Ga 3 Ag + 1 Ga(NO3)3

11)

1 N2 + 3 H2 2 NH3

12)

1 NaCl + 1 H2SO4 1 NaHSO4 + 1 HCl

13)

2 KMnO4 1 K2MnO4 + 1 MnO2 + 1 O2

14)

1 Fe + 2 AgNO3 1 Fe(NO3)2 + 2 Ag

15)

3 Li2SO4 + 2 K3PO4 2 Li3PO4 + 3 K2SO4

Tisa
List what type the following reactions are:
1) NaOH + KNO3 --> NaNO3 + KOH
2) CH4 + 2 O2 --> CO2 + 2 H2O
3) 2 Fe + 6 NaBr --> 2 FeBr3 + 6 Na
4) CaSO4 + Mg(OH)2 --> Ca(OH)2 + MgSO4
5) NH4OH + HBr --> H2O + NH4Br
6) Pb + O2 --> PbO2
7) Na2CO3 --> Na2O + CO2

1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
6)
7)

double displacement
combustion
single displacement
double displacement
acid-base
synthesis
decomposition