What coefficients must be added to balance the following equation? (1 point)
_____LiOH + _____H2 SO4 yields _____ Li2SO4 + _____ H2O
A. 2, 1, 1, 1,
B. 3, 1, 1, 3
C. 2, 1, 1, 2
D. 4, 2, 2, 1
To balance a chemical equation, you need to make sure that the number of each type of atom is the same on both sides of the equation.
First, let's count the number of atoms on each side of the equation:
On the left side, we have:
- 1 Li (from LiOH)
- 1 O (from LiOH)
- 1 H (from H2SO4)
- 1 S (from H2SO4)
- 4 O (from H2SO4)
On the right side, we have:
- 2 Li (from Li2SO4)
- 1 S (from Li2SO4)
- 4 O (from Li2SO4)
- 2 H (from H2O)
Now we can see that the number of Li, S, and O atoms are not balanced, so we need to add coefficients in front of the compounds to balance the equation.
By looking at the options given:
A. 2, 1, 1, 1,
B. 3, 1, 1, 3
C. 2, 1, 1, 2
D. 4, 2, 2, 1
We can test each option to see which one balances the equation.
For option A:
2 LiOH + 1 H2SO4 yields 1 Li2SO4 + 1 H2O
This balances the number of Li atoms but not the number of H, S, or O atoms.
For option B:
3 LiOH + 1 H2SO4 yields 1 Li2SO4 + 3 H2O
This balances the number of Li, H, and O atoms but not the number of S atoms.
For option C:
2 LiOH + 1 H2SO4 yields 1 Li2SO4 + 2 H2O
This balances the number of Li, H, O, and S atoms, so option C is the correct answer.
Therefore, the coefficients that must be added to balance the equation are:
2, 1, 1, 2