Write balanced equation for:
Al + NH4CLO4 (yields) Al2O3 + AlCl3 + nitrogen monoxide gas, and steam
3Al + 3NH4ClO4 ==> Al2O3 + AlCl3 + 3NO + 6H2O(g)
To write a balanced chemical equation, we need to make sure that the number of atoms of each element is the same on both sides of the equation.
First, let’s identify the elements and the number of atoms on each side of the equation:
On the left side:
- Aluminum (Al): 1 atom
- Nitrogen (N): 1
- Hydrogen (H): 4
- Chlorine (Cl): 1
- Oxygen (O): 4
On the right side:
- Aluminum (Al): 2 atoms
- Nitrogen (N): 1
- Hydrogen (H): 0
- Chlorine (Cl): 3
- Oxygen (O): 4
To balance the equation, we'll start with the Aluminum (Al) atoms:
- On the left side, we have 1 Al atom.
- On the right side, we have 2 Al atoms.
To balance the Al, we'll put a coefficient of 2 in front of Al on the left side:
2Al + NH4ClO4 → Al2O3 + AlCl3 + ...
Now let's balance Chlorine (Cl):
On the left side, we have 1 Cl atom from NH4ClO4 and 0 Cl atoms from Al.
On the right side, we have 3 Cl atoms from AlCl3.
To balance Cl, we'll put a coefficient of 3 in front of AlCl3 on the right side:
2Al + NH4ClO4 → Al2O3 + 3AlCl3 + ...
Next, let's balance Oxygen (O):
On the left side, we have 4 O atoms from NH4ClO4.
On the right side, we have 3 O atoms from Al2O3.
To balance O, we'll put a coefficient of 3 in front of NH4ClO4 on the left side:
2Al + 3NH4ClO4 → Al2O3 + 3AlCl3 + ...
Finally, let's balance Hydrogen (H) and Nitrogen (N):
On the left side, we have 12 H atoms and 1 N atom from NH4ClO4.
On the right side, we don't have any H or N atoms.
To balance H and N, we'll put a coefficient of 6 in front of NH4ClO4 on the left side:
2Al + 3(6)NH4ClO4 → Al2O3 + 3AlCl3 + ...
Simplifying the coefficients, we get the balanced equation:
2Al + 18NH4ClO4 → Al2O3 + 3AlCl3 + ...
We'll also have nitrogen monoxide gas (NO) and steam (H2O) as products, but their quantities aren't specified.