Question

Mg(s)+2HCl(aq)  →  MgCl2(aq)+H2(g)

In an experiment, a student places a small piece of pure Mg(s) into a beaker containing 250.mL of 6.44MHCl(aq) . A reaction occurs, as represented by the equation above.


(a) Write the balanced net ionic equation for the reaction between Mg(s) and HCl(aq) .

Answer 1

`Mg(s)+2H^+(aq)\rightarrow Mg^(2+)(aq)+H_2(g)`

Step-by-step explanation:

Hello!

In this case, since the writing of a net ionic equation first implies writing the complete molecular equation:

`Mg(s)+2HCl(aq) \rightarrow MgCl_2(aq)+H_2(g)`

We can see that HCl and MgCl2 are ionized because they are aqueous, thus we write:

`Mg(s)+2H^+(aq)+2Cl^-(aq) \rightarrow Mg^(2+)(aq)+2Cl^-(aq)+H_2(g)`

In such a way, we can cancel out the chloride ions as they are the spectator ones to obtain the net ionic one:

`Mg(s)+2H^+(aq)\rightarrow Mg^(2+)(aq)+H_2(g)`

Best regards!