Question

12.4g of phosphorus reacts with 9.6 g of oxygen what is the blanced chemical equation?

Answer 1

The balanced chemical equation :

P₄+3O₂⇒P₄O₆

Further explanation

A compound consists of the mole ratio of the constituent components

12.4 g of phosphorus, mol :

`\tt mol=(mass)/(MW)\\\\mol=(12.4)/(31)\\\\mol=0.4`

9.6 g of oxygen, mol :

`\tt mol=(mass)/(MW)\\\\mol=(9.6)/(16)\\\\mol=0.6`

the mole ratio of the compound resulting from the reaction of phosphorus and oxygen :

P : O = 0.4 : 0.6⇒ 4 : 6

The compound formula :

P₄O₆

So the reaction (balanced) :

`\tt 4P+3O_2\rightarrow = P_4O_6`

Usually this reaction occurs when phosphorus reacts with a small amount of oxygen instead of excess oxygen(for excess oxygen, the compound produced :P₄O₁₀)