Been trying to balance this equation for a while, but can't get the right answer. any help would be apperciated!
CH2O (aq) + NO3 - ---> N2 + HCO3 - + CO2(g)
You need to learn to do these. Here is a link that will get you started.
It won't balance without a little nudge here and there.
20CH2O (aq) + 16NO3^- + 6H^+ ---> 8N2 + 10HCO3^- + 10CO2(g) + 18H2O
http://www.chemteam.info/Redox/Redox.html
@DrBob222:
I know how to do redox problems. It's just that this problem has a specific answer with the coefficients being 5,4=>2,4,1,3.
Where no protons remain in the final answer
OK but you have six coefficients in 5,4 ==> 2,4,1,3 and you don't have but five substances. And the equation doesn't balance although you may not need it to balance. I think redox part is balanced and that may be all you need.
Balancing chemical equations can be a bit challenging at times, but with a systematic approach, we can find the right answer.
Let's start by counting each type of atom on both sides of the equation.
On the left side of the equation (reactants):
1 carbon (C)
4 hydrogen (H)
2 oxygen (O)
1 nitrogen (N)
On the right side of the equation (products):
2 nitrogen (N)
3 oxygen (O)
1 carbon (C)
4 hydrogen (H)
Now, let's balance the equation by adjusting the coefficients in front of each compound.
Let's start by balancing carbon (C):
We have one carbon atom on the left side and one on the right side, so carbon is already balanced.
Next, let's balance hydrogen (H):
We have four hydrogen atoms on each side, so hydrogen is balanced as well.
Now, let's balance oxygen (O):
On the left side, we have two oxygen atoms from the "CH2O" compound. Oxygen also appears in "NO3-", so there are a total of 5 oxygen atoms on the left side.
On the right side, we have three oxygen atoms from "HCO3-" and one oxygen atom from "CO2" for a total of 4 oxygen atoms.
To balance the oxygen, we need to add one more oxygen atom to the right side. We can do this by adding a coefficient of "2" in front of "HCO3-" to give us "2HCO3-" and now we have 5 oxygen atoms on both sides.
Now, let's balance nitrogen (N):
On the left side, we have one nitrogen atom, whereas on the right side, we have two nitrogen atoms. To balance nitrogen, we can add a coefficient of "2" in front of "NO3-" to give us "2NO3-". Now we have two nitrogen atoms on both sides.
The balanced equation is now:
CH2O(aq) + 2NO3- → N2 + 2HCO3- + CO2(g)
Now, all the atoms are balanced, and the equation is balanced as well.