Final answer:
The balanced equation for the reaction between copper(I) oxide and oxygen gas to produce copper(II) oxide is 4 Cu2O(s) + O2(g) → 2 CuO(s).
Step-by-step explanation:
The balanced chemical equation for the reaction where copper(I) oxide (solid) reacts with oxygen gas to produce copper(II) oxide (solid) is option a) 4 Cu2O(s) + O2(g) → 2 CuO(s). In this reaction, four moles of copper(I) oxide react with one mole of oxygen gas to produce two moles of copper(II) oxide. To balance this reaction, you need to ensure that the number of atoms for each element is the same on both sides of the equation. For copper (Cu), there are 8 atoms on the reactant side (4 × 2 from Cu2O) and 2 atoms on the product side (2 from CuO), so you need to multiply CuO by 4 to balance copper. For oxygen (O), there are 4 oxygen atoms on the reactant side (4 from 4 × Cu2O) and 2 atoms on the product side (2 from 2 × CuO), so to balance oxygen you must multiply the CuO on the product side by 4 and make sure there's one O2 molecule on the reactant side to provide the necessary 2 oxygen atoms.