Final answer:
D. 7, The correct answer to the question about the coefficient of oxygen when balancing the equation C2H6 + O2 → CO2 + H2O isensuring the balanced equation has an equal number of atoms on both sides.
Step-by-step explanation:
When you balance the chemical equation for the combustion of ethane (C2H6), the complete balanced equation is: 2 C2H6 + 7 O2 → 4 CO2 + 6 H2O. Therefore, the coefficient of oxygens (O2) is 7.
This coefficient ensures that there are equal numbers of each type of atom on both sides of the equation, satisfying the law of conservation of mass.
To clarify the process, we start by first balancing the carbon (C) and hydrogen (H) atoms, which leads to coefficients for CO2 and H2O in the products. Next, we adjust the oxygen atoms to balance the equation. Since oxygen is a diatomic molecule (O2), we can only add even numbers of oxygen atoms at a time.
As a result, other coefficients in the equation may need to be adjusted to maintain the balance of all elements.
The correct answer to the question 'When you balance the equation C2H6 + O2 → CO2 + H2O, what is the coefficient of oxygen?' is D. 7.