Question

the bunsen burners in your labs are fueled by natural gas which is mostly methane. the thermochemical equation for the combustion of methane is

Answer 1

CH₄ + 2O₂ —> CO₂ + 2H₂O

Step-by-step explanation:

The thermochemical equation for the combustion of methane can be obtained as follow:

Methane (CH₄) under goes combustion in the presence of air (O₂) to produce carbon dioxide (CO₂) and water (H₂O). This can be represented in the equation below:

CH₄ + O₂ —> CO₂ + H₂O

Thus, we can balance the equation as follow:

CH₄ + O₂ —> CO₂ + H₂O

There are 4 atoms of H on the left side and 2 atoms on the right side. It can be balance by putting 2 in front of H₂O as shown below:

CH₄ + O₂ —> CO₂ + 2H₂O

There are a total of 4 atoms of O on the right side and 1 atom on the left side. It can be balance by putting 2 in front of O₂ as shown below:

CH₄ + 2O₂ —> CO₂ + 2H₂O

Now the equation is balanced.