The primary reaction catalyzed by catalase is the decomposition of hydrogen peroxide to form water and oxygen, which occurs spontaneously, but not at a very rapid rate. Write a balanced equation for this reaction. (Remember that catalase is not a reactant or a product and can be written over the arrow separating the reactant from the products.)
The balanced equation for the decomposition of hydrogen peroxide catalyzed by catalase can be written as:
2 H2O2 → 2 H2O + O2
To write a balanced equation for the decomposition of hydrogen peroxide catalyzed by catalase, we need to consider the reactants and products involved in the reaction.
The reactant is hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), and the products are water (H2O) and oxygen gas (O2).
The balanced equation for this reaction is as follows:
2 H2O2 --> 2 H2O + O2
Now, let's explain how we arrived at this balanced equation:
At first, we need to balance the oxygen atoms. Since there are two oxygen atoms in hydrogen peroxide and only one oxygen atom in water, we need to ensure that the number of oxygen atoms is equal on both sides of the equation.
To achieve this, we place a coefficient of 2 in front of water:
2 H2O2 --> 2 H2O + O2
Next, we need to balance the hydrogen atoms. We already have four hydrogen atoms on both sides of the equation (2 in H2O2 and 4 in H2O). Therefore, the hydrogen atoms are already balanced.
Finally, we check if all the elements are balanced. We have two hydrogen atoms, two oxygen atoms, and one oxygen atom on the left side, and four hydrogen atoms and two oxygen atoms on the right side. Thus, all the elements are balanced.
This balanced equation represents the decomposition of hydrogen peroxide into water and oxygen gas catalyzed by catalase.
hahaha oh no you don't cheater...
this is YOUR hw for a reason :p