Chemical Reaction/Equation Example


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A chemical equation is a symbolic representation of a chemical reaction.

Chemical reaction example: Hydrochloric Acid  reacts with Sodium Carbonate to produce Carbon Dioxide, Water, and Sodium Chloride.

Reactions in Chemistry - reactants and products

The species to the left of the arrow are called reactants. The species to the right of the arrow are called  products.

In symbolic form we write:   Na2CO3 + HCl   -->   CO2 + H2O + NaCl

or by using state symbols :   Na2CO3(s) + HCl(aq)   -->   CO2(g) + H2O(l) + NaCl(aq)

 State symbols in chemistry :  (s) = solid    (l) = liquid   (g) = gas   (aq) = aqueous (dissolved in water)


Note: Writing chemical reaction in CHEMIX the arrow must be replaced with the   >  sign.

In CHEMIX writing is stright forward - you do not have to use subscript or superscript.

Example writing a chemical reaction in CHEMIX:

                 Na2CO3(s) + HCl(aq)   >   CO2(g) + H2O(l) + NaCl(aq)
chemical reaction equation


Balancing:     Na2CO3(s) + 2HCl(aq) =  CO2(g) + H2O(l) + 2NaCl(aq)

This reaction will produce CO2 gas, H2O will be formed and Sodium and Chlorine will stay in the solution as Na+ and Cl- ions


Note: In CHEMIX  (Balance) you can even argument species in the equation by grams (g) or by moles (m).

Example: How many grams of sodium carbonate will produce 10 grams of CO2 gas ?

Solution: Insert 10g (10 grams) in front of CO2 :

 Na2CO3(s) + HCl(aq)   >   10gCO2(g) + H2O(l) + NaCl(aq)


By downloading CHEMIX more examples will be available.

Related Chemistry topic: Balancing Chemical Equations - Balance Examples

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