Final answer:
To balance a chemical equation, one writes the correct formulas for reactants and products, ensures each element has the same number of atoms on both sides, and applies coefficients as necessary, for instance in carbon combustion reactions.
Step-by-step explanation:
The process of balancing a chemical equation involves writing the correct formulae of reactants and products and ensuring that the number of atoms for each element is equal on both sides of the arrow. For example, when carbon (C) combusts in oxygen (O2), the reaction is represented as C (s) + O2 (g) → CO2 (g), where the (s) and (g) denote the physical state of the reactants, solid and gas respectively. Combustion reactions must have oxygen as a reactant, and high temperatures during combustion will typically result in products like carbon dioxide (CO2) and water (H2O) in the gas state due to the heat produced.
To balance the equation correctly, one might start by balancing the carbon atoms, then proceed to balance hydrogen atoms, if present, before finally balancing oxygen atoms, often adjusting the coefficients multiple times to achieve a balanced equation. An example step in balancing might look like: C6H12O6 + O2 → 6CO2 + H2O, where we multiply CO2 by 6 to balance carbon atoms, following by adjusting the number of O2 molecules to balance oxygen atoms.