balance the following equation please. comes from two half cell.
HClO(aq)+ H^+(aq)+ e -> Cl^- (aq) +H2O(l)
Nope. Something is amiss here. You have only half of the equation.
HClO(aq)+ H^+(aq)+ e -> Cl^- (aq) +H2O(l)
The only element changing is Cl which goes from +1 oxidation state on the left to -1 on the right. Here is the balanced HALF equation.
ClO^-(aq) + 2e + 2H^+ -> Cl^- (aq) + H2O(l) or
HClO(aq) + 2e + 2H^+ ==> HCl(aq) + H2O(l)
To balance the given equation, we will follow these steps:
Step 1: Separate the half-reactions:
HClO(aq) -> Cl^-(aq)
H^+(aq) + e^- -> H2O(l)
Step 2: Balance the atoms other than hydrogen and oxygen:
Starting with the Cl^-(aq) half-reaction, we already have one Cl on both sides, so it is balanced.
Next, in the H^+(aq) + e^- -> H2O(l) half-reaction, we only have hydrogen involved. We have one H on the reactant side and two H in the product side, so we need to balance it by adding a coefficient of 2 in front of the H^+(aq) + e^-.
The equation now becomes:
HClO(aq) -> Cl^-(aq)
2H^+(aq) + 2e^- -> H2O(l)
Step 3: Balance the charges by adding electrons:
Since we have 2 electrons on the right side of the equation in the H^+(aq) + e^- -> H2O(l) half-reaction, we need to introduce 2 electrons in the Cl^-(aq) half-reaction.
The equation becomes:
HClO(aq) + 2H^+(aq) + 2e^- -> Cl^-(aq) + H2O(l)
Step 4: Check and balance oxygen atoms:
We have 3 oxygens in HClO(aq) and only 1 oxygen in H2O(l). To balance the oxygen, we need to add 2 HClO(aq) on the reactant side.
The final balanced equation is:
2HClO(aq) + 2H^+(aq) + 2e^- -> 2Cl^-(aq) + H2O(l)
To balance the given equation, we need to ensure that the number of atoms of each element is the same on both sides of the equation.
Step 1: Start by balancing the atoms that appear in one compound on each side of the equation. In this case, there is only one compound on each side of the equation, so let's begin by balancing the hydrogen atoms. On the left side, there is one hydrogen atom, and on the right side, there are two hydrogen atoms in the H2O molecule. We can balance the hydrogen atoms by adding a coefficient of 2 in front of the H2O molecule on the product side.
HClO(aq) + H+(aq) + e^- -> Cl^-(aq) + 2H2O(l)
Step 2: Next, let's balance the oxygen atoms. On the left side, there is one oxygen atom in HClO, and on the right side, there are four oxygen atoms in the two H2O molecules. We can balance the oxygen atoms by adding a coefficient of 2 in front of the HClO molecule on the reactant side.
2HClO(aq) + H+(aq) + e^- -> Cl^-(aq) + 2H2O(l)
Step 3: Now let's balance the charge. On the left side, there is a net charge of -1 (HClO has no charge, and H+ carries a charge of +1, and the electron carries a charge of -1). On the right side, Cl^- carries a charge of -1. Therefore, the charges are already balanced.
The balanced equation is:
2HClO(aq) + 2H+(aq) + 2e^- -> 2Cl^-(aq) + 2H2O(l)
Remember to always check that the equation is balanced by counting the atoms of each element and confirming the charges.