Question

At high temperatures, ammonium nitrate decomposes into water vapor and nitrous oxide. One molecule of ammonium nitrate produces two molecules of water and one molecule of nitrous oxide. Ball-and-stick models of nitrous oxide and water molecules are shown.

Information
Two ball-and-stick models.Short description, Two ball-and-stick models.,Long description,
The ball-and-stick models show a water molecule and a nitrous oxide molecule. The water molecule has 1 oxygen atom and 2 hydrogen atoms. The nitrous oxide molecule has 1 oxygen atom and 2 nitrogen atoms.


Question
Given that mass is conserved in chemical reactions, how many hydrogen, nitrogen, and oxygen atoms are there in a molecule of ammonium nitrate? Move numbers to their correct places in the table.

Response area with 3 blank spaces
Ammonium Nitrate Molecule
Number of Hydrogen Atoms Number of Oxygen Atoms Number of Nitrogen Atoms
Blank space 3 empty
​

Blank space 4 empty
​

Blank space 5 empty
​


Answer options with 5 options.

Answer 1

To determine the number of hydrogen, nitrogen, and oxygen atoms in a molecule of ammonium nitrate (NH4NO3), we can analyze its chemical formula.

The structure of ammonium nitrate is made up of:

- **Ammonium ion (NH4+)** which contains:
- 4 hydrogen (H) atoms
- 1 nitrogen (N) atom

- **Nitrate ion (NO3-)** which contains:
- 3 oxygen (O) atoms
- 1 nitrogen (N) atom

By combining these, we can find the total number of each type of atom in a molecule of ammonium nitrate:

- Total Nitrogen atoms = 1 (from NH4) + 1 (from NO3) = 2 nitrogen atoms.
- Total Hydrogen atoms = 4 (from NH4) = 4 hydrogen atoms.
- Total Oxygen atoms = 3 (from NO3) = 3 oxygen atoms.

Now we fill in the table:

| Ammonium Nitrate Molecule | Number of Hydrogen Atoms | Number of Oxygen Atoms | Number of Nitrogen Atoms |
|---------------------------|--------------------------|------------------------|--------------------------|
| | 4 | 3 | 2 |

So the final answer is:

- Number of Hydrogen Atoms: **4**
- Number of Oxygen Atoms: **3**
- Number of Nitrogen Atoms: **2**