Balance the following the chemical equation:
Mg + O2 → MgO
The balanced chemical equation is:
2Mg + O2 → 2MgO
To balance the chemical equation Mg + O2 → MgO, you need to make sure that the number of atoms of each element is the same on both sides of the equation.
In this case, let's start by counting the number of Mg atoms. There is 1 Mg atom on the left side and 1 Mg atom on the right side.
Next, let's count the number of O atoms. On the left side, there are 2 O atoms (since O2 means there are 2 oxygen atoms). On the right side, there is 1 O atom.
To balance the equation, we need to have the same number of O atoms on both sides. We can do this by adding a coefficient in front of MgO:
Mg + O2 → MgO
Now, let's add a coefficient of 2 in front of MgO:
Mg + O2 → 2MgO
Now, let's check the number of Mg atoms and O atoms again:
On the left side: 1 Mg atom and 2 O atoms
On the right side: 2 Mg atoms and 2 O atoms
Now the number of Mg atoms and O atoms are the same on both sides, and the equation is balanced:
Mg + O2 → 2MgO
To balance the chemical equation Mg + O2 → MgO, you need to make sure that there is the same number of each type of atom on both sides of the equation. Here's how you can do it:
First, let's start with the number of Magnesium (Mg) atoms. There is already one Mg atom on the left side, so we need to have one Mg atom on the right side as well.
Next, let's look at Oxygen (O) atoms. On the left side, there are two O atoms from O2. To balance this, we would need two O atoms on the right side as well. However, currently, there is only one O atom in MgO.
To fix this, we can multiply the MgO compound on the right side by 2, so we have 2 Mg atoms and 2 O atoms in total. The balanced equation becomes:
2 Mg + O2 → 2 MgO
Now, when you count the number of Mg and O atoms on both sides, they are equal. Therefore, the equation is balanced.