Elfrida Ginting, Ph.

1
BALANCING CHEMICAL
REACTION AND
STOICHIOMETRY
ELFRIDA GINTING, PH.D
 Elfrida Ginting, Ph.D

2 CHEMICAL REACTIONS

• What happens to matter when it is undergoing reaction?

• Law of Conservation of Mass
• Atoms are neither created nor destroyed during any chemical
reactions
• It is only rearrangement of atoms
 Elfrida Ginting, Ph.D

3 CHEMICAL EQUATIONS

(𝑁𝐻4 )2 𝐶𝑟2 𝑂7 (𝑠) → 𝐶𝑟2 𝑂3 (𝑠) + 𝑁2 (𝑔) + 4𝐻2 𝑂 (𝑔)

 Elfrida Ginting, Ph.D

4 CHEMICAL EQUATIONS

(𝑁𝐻4 )2 𝐶𝑟2 𝑂7 (𝑠) → 𝐶𝑟2 𝑂3 (𝑠) + 𝑁2 (𝑔) + 4𝐻2 𝑂 (𝑔)

Reactant Product

Two Chromium atom

Two Nitrogen atom
Seven Oxygen atom
Eight Hydrogen atom
 Elfrida Ginting, Ph.D

5 STEPS FOR BALANCING A CHEMICAL EQUATIONS

❖ Identify the most complex substance.
❖Beginning with that substance, choose an element that appears in only one reactant and
one product, if possible. Adjust the coefficients to obtain the same number of atoms of this
element on both sides.
❖Balance polyatomic ions (if present) as a unit.
❖Balance the remaining atoms, usually ending with the least complex substance and using
fractional coefficients if necessary. If a fractional coefficient has been used, multiply both
sides of the equation by the denominator to obtain whole numbers for the coefficients.
❖Count the numbers of atoms of each kind on both sides of the equation to be sure that
the chemical equation is balanced.
 Elfrida Ginting, Ph.D

6 BALANCING SIMPLE CHEMICAL EQUATIONS

• The combustion of n-heptane

• 𝐶7 𝐻16 (𝑙) + 𝑂2 (𝑔) → 𝐶𝑂2 (𝑔) + 𝐻2 𝑂(𝑔)
7 Carbon atom 1 Carbon atom
16 Hydrogen atom 2 Hydrogen atom
2 Oxygen atom 3 Oxygen atom
Chemical equations is not balanced
 Elfrida Ginting, Ph.D

7 BALANCING CHEMICAL EQUATIONS

❖ Identify the most complex substance

𝐶7 𝐻16
❖Try to adjust the coefficients of the molecules on the other side of the
equation to obtain the same numbers of atoms on both sides. Because one
molecule of n-heptane contains 7 carbon atoms, we need 7 CO2 molecules,
each of which contains 1 carbon atom, on the right side:
𝐶7 𝐻16 (𝑙) + 𝑂2 (𝑔) → 7𝐶𝑂2 (𝑔) + 𝐻2 𝑂 (𝑔)
 Elfrida Ginting, Ph.D

8 BALANCING CHEMICAL EQUATIONS

❖Balance polyatomic ions as a unit.

❖There are no polyatomic ions to be considered in this reaction
❖Balance the remaining atoms.
❖Because one molecule of n-heptane contains 16 hydrogen atoms, we need 8 H2O
molecules, each of which contains 2 hydrogen atoms, on the right side:
𝐶7 𝐻16 (𝑙) + 11𝑂2 (𝑔) → 7𝐶𝑂2 (𝑔) + 8𝐻2 𝑂 (𝑔)
❖Check your work
❖Left side: 7 Carbon atom, 16 Hydrogen atom, 22 Oxygen atom
❖Right side: 7 Carbon atom, 16 Hydrogen atom, 22 Oxygen atom
 Elfrida Ginting, Ph.D

9 EXAMPLE 1

❖Consider, for example, a similar reaction, the combustion of isooctane

(C8H18). Because the combustion of any hydrocarbon with oxygen produces
carbon dioxide and water, the unbalanced chemical equation is as follows:
𝐶8 𝐻18 (𝑙) + 𝑂2 (𝑔) → 𝐶𝑂2 (𝑔) + 𝐻2 𝑂 (𝑔)
❖Identify the most complex substance. Begin the balancing process by
assuming that the final balanced chemical equation contains a single
molecule of isooctane.
𝐶8 𝐻18
 Elfrida Ginting, Ph.D

10 ANSWER

❖Adjust the coefficients. The first element that appears only once in the
reactants is carbon: 8 carbon atoms in isooctane means that there must be 8
CO2 molecules in the products:
𝐶8 𝐻18 (𝑙) + 𝑂2 (𝑔) ⟶ 8𝐶𝑂2 (𝑔) + 𝐻2 𝑂 (𝑔)
❖Balance the remaining atoms. Eighteen hydrogen atoms in isooctane
means that there must be 9 H2O molecules in the products:
25
𝐶8 𝐻18 (𝑙) + 𝑂2 (𝑔) ⟶ 8𝐶𝑂2 (𝑔) + 9𝐻2 𝑂 (𝑔)
2
 Elfrida Ginting, Ph.D

11 ANSWER (CONT’D)

❖Chemical equation is now balanced, but we usually write equations with

whole-number coefficients. We can eliminate the fractional coefficient by
multiplying all coefficients on both sides of the chemical equation by 2:
2𝐶8 𝐻18 (𝑙) + 25𝑂2 (𝑔) ⟶ 16𝐶𝑂2 (𝑔) + 18𝐻2 𝑂 (𝑔)
❖Check your work.
❖Left side: 16 Carbon atom, 32 Hydrogen atom, 50 Oxygen atom
❖Right side: 16 Carbon atom, 32 Hydrogen atom, 50 Oxygen atom
 Elfrida Ginting, Ph.D

12 EXAMPLE 2

❖The reaction of the mineral hydroxyapatite [Ca5(PO4)3(OH)] with

phosphoric acid and water gives Ca(H2PO4)2•H2O (calcium dihydrogen
phosphate monohydrate). Write and balance the equation for this reaction.
❖Given: reactants and product
❖Asked for: balanced chemical equation
[𝐶𝑎5 (𝑃𝑂4 )3 (𝑂𝐻)] 𝑠 + 𝐻3 𝑃𝑂4 𝑎𝑞 + 𝐻2 𝑂 𝑙 ⟶ 𝐶𝑎(𝐻2 𝑃𝑂4 )2 ∙ 𝐻2 𝑂 (𝑠)
 Elfrida Ginting, Ph.D

13 ANSWER

❖Identify the most complex substance. We start by assuming that only

one molecule or formula unit of the most complex substance,
Ca5(PO4)3(OH), appears in the balanced chemical equation.
[𝐶𝑎5 (𝑃𝑂4 )3 (𝑂𝐻)]
❖Adjust the coefficients. Because calcium is present in only one reactant
and one product, we begin with it. One formula unit of Ca5(PO4)3(OH)
contains 5 calcium atoms, so we need 5 Ca(H2PO4)2•H2O on the right side:
[𝐶𝑎5 (𝑃𝑂4 )3 (𝑂𝐻)] 𝑠 + 𝐻3 𝑃𝑂4 𝑎𝑞 + 𝐻2 𝑂 𝑙 ⟶ 5𝐶𝑎(𝐻2 𝑃𝑂4 )2 ∙ 𝐻2 𝑂 (𝑠)
 Elfrida Ginting, Ph.D

14 ANSWER (CONT’D)

❖Balance polyatomic ions as a unit.

[𝐶𝑎5 (𝑃𝑂4 )3 (𝑂𝐻)] 𝑠 + 7𝐻3 𝑃𝑂4 𝑎𝑞 + 𝐻2 𝑂 𝑙 ⟶ 5𝐶𝑎(𝐻2 𝑃𝑂4 )2 ∙ 𝐻2 𝑂(𝑠)
❖Balance the remaining atoms.
We now have 30 hydrogen atoms on the right side but only 24 on the left. We
can balance the hydrogen atoms using the least complex substance, H2O, by
placing a coefficient of 4 in front of H2O on the left side, giving a total of 4
H2O molecules:
[𝐶𝑎5 (𝑃𝑂4 )3 (𝑂𝐻)] 𝑠 + 7𝐻3 𝑃𝑂4 𝑎𝑞 + 4𝐻2 𝑂 𝑙 ⟶ 5𝐶𝑎(𝐻2 𝑃𝑂4 )2 ∙ 𝐻2 𝑂(𝑠)
 Elfrida Ginting, Ph.D

15 INTERPRETING CHEMICAL EQUATIONS

 Elfrida Ginting, Ph.D

16 EXAMPLE 1

❖The balanced chemical equation for the combustion of glucose in the laboratory (or
in the brain) is as follows:
𝐶6 𝐻12 𝑂6(𝑠) + 6𝑂2(𝑔) ⟶ 6𝐶𝑂2(𝑔) + 6𝐻2 𝑂(𝑔)
❖Construct a table showing how to interpret the information in this equation in terms
of
❖a single molecule of glucose.
❖moles of reactants and products.
❖grams of reactants and products represented by 1 mol of glucose.
❖numbers of molecules of reactants and products represented by 1 mol of glucose.
 Elfrida Ginting, Ph.D

17 ANSWER

• Given: balanced chemical equation

• Asked for: molecule, mole, and mass relationships
• Strategy:
• Use the coefficients from the balanced chemical equation to determine both
the molecular and mole ratios.
• Use the molar masses of the reactants and products to convert from moles
to grams.
• Use Avogadro’s number to convert from moles to the number of molecules.
 Elfrida Ginting, Ph.D

18 ANSWER (CONT’D)

❖Each side has 6 carbon atoms, 18 oxygen atoms, and 12 hydrogen atoms.
❖One molecule of glucose reacts with 6 molecules of O2 to yield 6 molecules
of CO2 and 6 molecules of H2O.
❖One mole of glucose reacts with 6 mol of O2 to yield 6 mol of CO2 and 6
mol of H2O.
❖The molar masses in grams per mole are as follows: glucose, 180.16; O2,
31.9988; CO2, 44.010; and H2O, 18.015.
 Elfrida Ginting, Ph.D

19 ANSWER (CONT’D)

❖Mass of reactant = mass of product

180.16 𝑔 31.9988 𝑔
❖1 𝑚𝑜𝑙 𝑔𝑙𝑢𝑐𝑜𝑠𝑒 × + 6 𝑚𝑜𝑙 𝑂2 = 6 𝑚𝑜𝑙 𝐶𝑂2 ×
1 𝑚𝑜𝑙 𝑔𝑙𝑢𝑐𝑜𝑠𝑒 1 𝑚𝑜𝑙 𝑂2
44.010 𝑔 18.015 𝑔
+ 6 𝑚𝑜𝑙 𝐻2 𝑂 ×
1 𝑚𝑜𝑙 𝐶𝑂2 1 𝑚𝑜𝑙 𝐻2 𝑂

❖372.15 g = 372.15 g
❖1 mol glucose contained 6.022 × 1023 of Glucose molecule
❖6.022 × 1023 of Glucose molecule react with 6 × 6.022 × 1023 = 3.613 ×
1024 molecules of O2.
 Elfrida Ginting, Ph.D

20 ANSWER (CONT’D)

• Yield (6 × 6.022 × 1023) = 3.613 × 1024 molecules each of CO2 and H2O.
 Elfrida Ginting, Ph.D

21 CHEMICAL EQUATIONS AND STOICHIOMETRY

 Elfrida Ginting, Ph.D

22 CHEMICAL EQUATIONS AND STOICHIOMETRY

❖To illustrate this procedure, consider the combustion of glucose. Glucose reacts
with oxygen to produce carbon dioxide and water:
𝐶6 𝐻12 𝑂6(𝑠) + 6𝑂2(𝑔) ⟶ 6𝐶𝑂2(𝑔) + 6𝐻2 𝑂(𝑔)
❖Just before a chemistry exam, suppose a friend reminds you that glucose is the
major fuel used by the human brain.You therefore decide to eat a candy bar to make
sure that your brain does not run out of energy during the exam (even though there
is no direct evidence that consumption of candy bars improves performance on
chemistry exams). If a typical 2 oz candy bar contains the equivalent of 45.3 g of
glucose and the glucose is completely converted to carbon dioxide during the exam,
how many grams of carbon dioxide will you produce and exhale into the exam
room?
 Elfrida Ginting, Ph.D

23 SOLUTION

• The initial step in solving a problem of this type is to write the balanced
chemical equation for the reaction. Inspection shows that it is balanced as
written, so the strategy outlined in , can be adapted as follows:
• Use the molar mass of glucose (to one decimal place, 180.2 g/mol) to
determine the number of moles of glucose in the candy bar:
1 𝑚𝑜𝑙 𝑔𝑙𝑢𝑐𝑜𝑠𝑒
𝑚𝑜𝑙𝑒𝑠 𝑔𝑙𝑢𝑐𝑜𝑠𝑒 = 45.3 𝑔 𝑔𝑙𝑢𝑐𝑜𝑠𝑒 × = 0,251 𝑚𝑜𝑙 𝑔𝑙𝑢𝑐𝑜𝑠𝑒
180.2 𝑔 𝑔𝑙𝑢𝑐𝑜𝑠𝑒
 Elfrida Ginting, Ph.D

24 SOLUTIONS (CONT’D)

❖According to the balanced chemical equation, 6 mol of CO is produced per

mole of glucose; the mole ratio of CO to glucose is therefore 6:1. The number
of moles of CO produced is thus
6 𝑚𝑜𝑙 𝐶𝑂2
𝑚𝑜𝑙𝑒𝑠 𝐶𝑂2 = 𝑚𝑜𝑙 𝑔𝑙𝑢𝑐𝑜𝑠𝑒 ×
1 𝑚𝑜𝑙 𝑔𝑙𝑢𝑐𝑜𝑠𝑒
6 𝑚𝑜𝑙 𝐶𝑂2
𝑚𝑜𝑙𝑒𝑠 𝐶𝑂2 = 0.251 𝑚𝑜𝑙 𝑔𝑙𝑢𝑐𝑜𝑠𝑒 × = 1.51 mol 𝐶𝑂2
1 𝑚𝑜𝑙 𝑔𝑙𝑢𝑐𝑜𝑠𝑒
 Elfrida Ginting, Ph.D

25 SOLUTIONS (CONT’D)

❖Use the molar mass of CO2 (44.010 g/mol) to calculate the mass of CO2
corresponding to 1.51 mol of CO2 :
44.010 𝑔 𝐶𝑂2
𝑀𝑎𝑠𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝐶𝑂2 = 1.51 𝑚𝑜𝑙 𝐶𝑂2 × = 66.5 𝑔 𝐶𝑂2
1 𝑚𝑜𝑙 𝐶𝑂2
 Elfrida Ginting, Ph.D

26 CALCULATING MOLES FROM VOLUME

 Elfrida Ginting, Ph.D

27 EXAMPLE

❖Gold is extracted from its ores by treatment with an aqueous cyanide

solution, which causes a reaction that forms the soluble [Au(CN) ] ion. Gold
is then recovered by reduction with metallic zinc according to the following
equation:

❖What mass of gold can be recovered from 400.0 L of a 3.30 × 10 M solution

of [Au(CN) ]?
 Elfrida Ginting, Ph.D

28 SOLUTIONS

• Given: chemical equation and molarity and volume of reactant

• Asked for: mass of product Strategy:
• Check the chemical equation to make sure it is balanced as written; balance if
necessary. Then calculate the number of moles of [Au(CN) ] present by multiplying
the volume of the solution by its concentration.
• From the balanced chemical equation, use a mole ratio to calculate the number of
moles of gold that can be obtained from the reaction. To calculate the mass of gold
recovered, multiply the number of moles of gold by its molar mass.
 Elfrida Ginting, Ph.D

29 SOLUTIONS (CONT’D)

• The equation is balanced as written; proceed to the stoichiometric

calculation. Figure 4.2.2 is adapted for this particular problem as follows:
 Elfrida Ginting, Ph.D

30 SOLUTIONS (CONT’D)

• As indicated in the strategy, start by calculating the number of

moles of [Au(CN) ] present in the solution from the volume
and concentration of the [Au(CN) ] solution:
 Elfrida Ginting, Ph.D

31 SOLUTIONS (CONT’D)

• Because the coefficients of gold and the [Au(CN)2 ] ion are the same in the
balanced chemical equation, assuming that Zn(s) is present in excess, the
number of moles of gold produced is the same as the number of moles of
[Au(CN)2 ] (i.e., 0.132 mol of Au). The problem asks for the mass of gold that
can be obtained, so the number of moles of gold must be converted to the
corresponding mass using the molar mass of gold:
 Elfrida Ginting, Ph.D

32 ASSIGNMENT

❖Ammonium nitrate is a common fertilizer, but under the wrong conditions it can be hazardous. In
1947, a ship loaded with ammonium nitrate caught fire during unloading and exploded, destroying the
town of Texas City, Texas.
❖The explosion resulted from the following reaction:
2𝑁𝐻4 𝑁𝑂3(𝑠) ⟶ 2𝑁2(𝑔) + 4𝐻2 𝑂(𝑔) + 𝑂2(𝑔)
• Construct a table showing how to interpret the information in the equation in terms of
• individual molecules and ions.
• moles of reactants and products.
• grams of reactants and products given 2 mol of ammonium nitrate.
• numbers of molecules or formula units of reactants and products given 2 mol of ammonium
nitrate.
 Elfrida Ginting, Ph.D

33 ASSIGNMENT

• The combustion of hydrogen with oxygen to produce gaseous water is extremely

vigorous, producing one of the hottest flames known. Because so much energy is
released for a given mass of hydrogen or oxygen, this reaction was used to fuel the
NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) space shuttles, which have
recently been retired from service. NASA engineers calculated the exact amount of each
reactant needed for the flight to make sure that the shuttles did not carry excess fuel
into orbit. Calculate how many tons of hydrogen a space shuttle needed to carry for each
1.00 tn of oxygen (1 tn = 2000 lb).