Final answer:
A chemical reaction is the transformation of reactants into products with different properties through the breaking and forming of chemical bonds. Chemical equations, which represent these reactions, must be balanced in compliance with the conservation of mass.
Step-by-step explanation:
A chemical reaction is a process where some chemical substances are converted into others, which have different compositions and properties. This process involves breaking the bonds between atoms in the reactants and the formation of new bonds in the products. During this transformation, a substance that initiates the reaction is known as a reactant, while the substance formed as a result of the reaction is called a product.
Chemical reactions can be represented by chemical equations, where the reactants are listed on the left side, and the products are on the right side, separated by an arrow that is read as "yields". In accordance with the law of conservation of mass, these equations must be balanced to ensure that the number and type of atoms are the same in both the reactants and products.
Overall, chemical reactions are fundamental to chemistry as they describe how substances interact and change, which is essential for understanding the behavior of materials and the principles of matter.