Question

A chemist wants to observe the following reaction:

2H2 + 02 → 2H20
The chemist is standing inside a room with oxygen in the air and has a balloon filled with hydrogen. The chemist holds a small flame up to the hydrogen balloon. When the balloon pops, the hydrogen explodes in a ball of fire.
Based on what you know about breaking and forming bonds, explain which part of the reaction is higher in energy (i.e., does it take more energy to break the bonds of the reactants, or is more energy given off when the product bonds are formed?). Defend your answer in three to five sentences.

Answer 1

[AI-generated answer — Bot GPT 3.5]

In this reaction, breaking the bonds of the reactants (H2 and O2) requires more energy than is given off when the product bonds (H2O) are formed. This is because breaking bonds requires an input of energy to overcome the attraction between the atoms in the molecules. However, when new bonds are formed in the products, energy is released as the atoms come together and stabilize. In this case, the breaking of the strong triple bonds in oxygen molecules (O2) and the weaker single bonds in hydrogen molecules (H2) require more energy than is released when the bonds in water molecules (H2O) are formed. This difference in energy release versus energy input is what leads to the explosive reaction when hydrogen and oxygen combine to form water.