show how CH4 +O2=CO2+H2O obeys the law of conservation of mass
You don't have any numbers; however, we can substitute grams from moles.
CH4 + 2O2 ==> CO2 + 2H2O
On the left CH4 = 16 and 2O2 = 64 for a total of 80g.
On the right we have CO2 = 44 and 2H2O = 36. 44 + 36 = 80.
To demonstrate how the chemical equation CH4 + O2 → CO2 + H2O obeys the law of conservation of mass, we need to balance the equation first.
Let's break down each element on both sides of the equation and count the number of atoms:
On the left side (reactants):
1 Carbon (C)
4 Hydrogen (H)
2 Oxygen (O)
On the right side (products):
1 Carbon (C)
2 Oxygen (O)
2 Hydrogen (H)
To balance the equation, we'll start by balancing the carbon and hydrogen atoms first.
1. Balance the carbon: There is one carbon atom on each side, so it is already balanced.
CH4 + O2 → CO2 + H2O
2. Balance the hydrogen: There are four hydrogen atoms on the left side, but only two on the right side. To balance it, we need to put a coefficient of 2 in front of the water (H2O) on the right side:
CH4 + O2 → CO2 + 2H2O
Now let's count the number of oxygen atoms:
On the left side: 2 oxygen atoms from O2.
On the right side: 2 oxygen atoms from CO2 + 2 oxygen atoms from H2O, totaling 4 oxygen atoms.
Since both sides have the same number of atoms for each element (C, H, and O), the equation is now balanced:
CH4 + O2 → CO2 + 2H2O
This balanced equation confirms that the law of conservation of mass is obeyed, as the number of atoms of each element is conserved on both sides of the chemical equation.
The balanced chemical equation you provided, CH4 + O2 = CO2 + H2O, is a representation of the combustion reaction of methane gas (CH4) in the presence of oxygen (O2), which produces carbon dioxide (CO2) and water (H2O).
To demonstrate how this equation obeys the law of conservation of mass, which states that matter cannot be created nor destroyed in a chemical reaction, we need to ensure that the number and types of atoms on both sides of the equation are equal.
Let's break down the equation and focus on the individual atoms:
On the left side (reactant side):
- Methane (CH4) contains 1 carbon (C) atom and 4 hydrogen (H) atoms.
- Oxygen (O2) is diatomic, meaning it exists as a molecule containing 2 oxygen (O) atoms.
On the right side (product side):
- Carbon dioxide (CO2) contains 1 carbon (C) atom and 2 oxygen (O) atoms.
- Water (H2O) has 2 hydrogen (H) atoms and 1 oxygen (O) atom.
Now, let's compare the number of atoms on each side:
Reactant side (left side):
- Carbon (C): 1
- Hydrogen (H): 4
- Oxygen (O): 2
Product side (right side):
- Carbon (C): 1
- Hydrogen (H): 2
- Oxygen (O): 3
By looking at the number of atoms involved, we can see that the equation is not balanced as the number of oxygen atoms differs between the reactants and products.
To balance the equation, we can use coefficients to adjust the number of atoms on each side:
CH4 + 2O2 = CO2 + 2H2O
With the balanced equation, the number of atoms on both sides is now equal:
Reactant side (left side):
- Carbon (C): 1
- Hydrogen (H): 4
- Oxygen (O): 4 (2 atoms from each O2 molecule)
Product side (right side):
- Carbon (C): 1
- Hydrogen (H): 4 (2 atoms from each H2O molecule)
- Oxygen (O): 4 (2 atoms from each CO2 molecule and 2 atoms from each H2O molecule)
As a result, the balanced equation CH4 + 2O2 = CO2 + 2H2O satisfies the law of conservation of mass by having an equal number of atoms on both the reactant and product sides.