Question

It's Elemental - Balancing Act!
Balance this equation!
(Equation number 1 of 5)



CaCN2

+

H2O

→

CaCO3

+

NH3


1


1


1


1

Answer 1

To balance the equation \( \text{CaCN}_2 + \text{H}_2\text{O} \rightarrow \text{CaCO}_3 + \text{NH}_3 \), we need to ensure that the number of atoms for each element is the same on both sides of the equation.

Let's break it down step by step.

1. **Count the atoms on each side**:
- **Reactants**:
- Ca: 1
- C: 2
- N: 2
- H: 2
- O: 1

- **Products**:
- Ca: 1
- C: 1
- N: 1
- H: 3
- O: 3

2. **Balancing the elements**:
- Start with **C**: There are 2 carbons in the reactant (from CaCN2) and only 1 in the product (from CaCO3). We can add a coefficient of 2 in front of CaCO3:

\[
\text{CaCN}_2 + \text{H}_2\text{O} \rightarrow 2 \text{CaCO}_3 + \text{NH}_3
\]

- Adjust the equation and re-count:
- **Products**:
- Ca: 1
- C: 2 (from 2 CaCO3)
- N: 1
- H: 3
- O: 6 (from 2 CaCO3)

- Now balance **N**: We have 2 N in the reactants (from CaCN2), thus we need 2 NH3:

\[
\text{CaCN}_2 + \text{H}_2\text{O} \rightarrow 2 \text{CaCO}_3 + 2 \text{NH}_3
\]

- Now count again:
- **Products**:
- Ca: 1
- C: 2 (from 2 CaCO3)
- N: 2 (from 2 NH3)
- H: 6 (from 2 NH3)
- O: 6 (from 2 CaCO3)

- Finally balance **H** and **O**. Since we now have 6 H in the products (from 2 NH3), we need 3 H2O on the reactant side:

\[
\text{CaCN}_2 + 3 \text{H}_2\text{O} \rightarrow 2 \text{CaCO}_3 + 2 \text{NH}_3
\]

3. **Check the final balance**:
- **Reactants**:
- Ca: 1
- C: 2
- N: 2
- H: 6
- O: 3

- **Products**:
- Ca: 2
- C: 2
- N: 2
- H: 6
- O: 6

This equation is balanced and the final balanced equation looks like this:

\[
\text{CaCN}_2 + 3 \text{H}_2\text{O} \rightarrow \text{CaCO}_3 + 2 \text{NH}_3
\]

The coefficients are:

1, 3 → 2, 2