How do the amount of atoms at the beginning of a reaction compare to the amount of atoms at the end?

Responses

The number of atoms at the start of the reaction are more than those after the reaction.
The number of atoms at the start of the reaction are more than those after the reaction.

the number of atoms present depends on the type of reaction that happens.
the number of atoms present depends on the type of reaction that happens.

The number of atoms at the start of the reaction are less than the number of atoms at the end of the reaction.
The number of atoms at the start of the reaction are less than the number of atoms at the end of the reaction.

The number of atoms are the same before and after the reaction.

1 answer

The correct response is:

The number of atoms are the same before and after the reaction.

This is based on the principle of conservation of mass, which states that matter cannot be created or destroyed in a chemical reaction. Therefore, the total number of atoms remains unchanged throughout the reaction.