Question
How does the law of conservation of mass apply to this reaction: Mg + HCl → H2 + MgCl2?
Responses
Only the hydrogen needs to be balanced. There are equal numbers of magnesium and chlorine.
Only the hydrogen needs to be balanced. There are equal numbers of magnesium and chlorine.
Hydrogen and chlorine need to be balanced. There is an equal amount of magnesium on each side
Hydrogen and chlorine need to be balanced. There is an equal amount of magnesium on each side
The law of conservation of mass has already been applied. There is an equal number of each element on both sides of the equation.
The law of conservation of mass has already been applied. There is an equal number of each element on both sides of the equation.
The equation needs to be balanced. There are fewer hydrogen atoms in the equation than magnesium or chlorine.
Responses
Only the hydrogen needs to be balanced. There are equal numbers of magnesium and chlorine.
Only the hydrogen needs to be balanced. There are equal numbers of magnesium and chlorine.
Hydrogen and chlorine need to be balanced. There is an equal amount of magnesium on each side
Hydrogen and chlorine need to be balanced. There is an equal amount of magnesium on each side
The law of conservation of mass has already been applied. There is an equal number of each element on both sides of the equation.
The law of conservation of mass has already been applied. There is an equal number of each element on both sides of the equation.
The equation needs to be balanced. There are fewer hydrogen atoms in the equation than magnesium or chlorine.
Answers
GPT-4o mini
The law of conservation of mass states that matter cannot be created or destroyed in a chemical reaction. This means that the number of atoms of each element must be the same on both sides of a balanced chemical equation.
For the reaction given:
\[ \text{Mg} + \text{HCl} \rightarrow \text{H}_2 + \text{MgCl}_2 \]
Let's analyze the number of atoms on each side:
- **Reactants:**
- Mg: 1
- H: 1 (from HCl)
- Cl: 1
- **Products:**
- Mg: 1
- H: 2 (from H2)
- Cl: 2 (from MgCl2)
As we can see, on the reactants' side, we have 1 magnesium, 1 hydrogen, and 1 chlorine atom. On the products' side, we have 1 magnesium, 2 hydrogens, and 2 chlorines. The hydrogen and chlorine atoms are not equal, which violates the law of conservation of mass.
Therefore, the correct response is:
**The equation needs to be balanced. There are fewer hydrogen atoms in the equation than magnesium or chlorine.**
To balance it, you would need to adjust the coefficients so that the number of each type of atom is the same on both sides. They should be properly balanced to satisfy the conservation of mass.
For the reaction given:
\[ \text{Mg} + \text{HCl} \rightarrow \text{H}_2 + \text{MgCl}_2 \]
Let's analyze the number of atoms on each side:
- **Reactants:**
- Mg: 1
- H: 1 (from HCl)
- Cl: 1
- **Products:**
- Mg: 1
- H: 2 (from H2)
- Cl: 2 (from MgCl2)
As we can see, on the reactants' side, we have 1 magnesium, 1 hydrogen, and 1 chlorine atom. On the products' side, we have 1 magnesium, 2 hydrogens, and 2 chlorines. The hydrogen and chlorine atoms are not equal, which violates the law of conservation of mass.
Therefore, the correct response is:
**The equation needs to be balanced. There are fewer hydrogen atoms in the equation than magnesium or chlorine.**
To balance it, you would need to adjust the coefficients so that the number of each type of atom is the same on both sides. They should be properly balanced to satisfy the conservation of mass.