Question

Starting with the partially balanced equation, C4H9OH(g)+?O₂(g)→4CO₂(g)+5H₂O(l), what coefficient should be placed in front of O₂ to balance the oxygen atoms?

Answer 1

To balance the oxygen atoms in the equation C₄H₉OH(g) + ?O₂(g) → 4CO₂(g) + 5H₂O(l), we use a fractional coefficient of ½ in front of O₂.

Step-by-step explanation:

To balance the oxygen atoms in the equation, we need to determine the coefficient for O₂.

Given the equation: C₄H₉OH(g) + ?O₂(g) → 4CO₂(g) + 5H₂O(l)

First, we balance the carbon and hydrogen atoms by changing the coefficients for the product species:

C₄H₉OH(g) + O₂(g) → 4CO₂(g) + 5H₂O(l)

Now, we can count the number of oxygen atoms on the product side, which is 4 in CO₂ and 5 in H₂O, giving us a total of 9 oxygen atoms.

Since there are an odd number of oxygen atoms, we cannot use an integer coefficient for O₂ to balance the equation. Instead, we use a fractional coefficient of ½ for O₂ to yield an even number of oxygen atoms.

Therefore, the coefficient that should be placed in front of O₂ to balance the oxygen atoms is ½.