Balancing Chemical Equations Unit 7 Notes

Conservation of Mass Reactions conserve mass - Mass not created or destroyed A reaction rearranges atoms, does not destroy or create them Balanced equation – same number of each element on both sides

Coefficients vs Subscripts Subscripts – part of a chemical formula – CANNOT CHANGE Coefficients – whole number in front of a formula – YOU CAN CHANGE

2 H2O Underlined 2 in front is coefficient, you can change Little 2 between H & O part of formula for water, can’t change

Steps to balancing equation Identify Reactants and Products Count the atoms Insert coefficients Verify your results