Question

Use the equation to answer the question.

CH4 + 2O2 → CO2 + H2O


Which statement describes why this chemical equation is not correct?

(1 point)
Responses

There are more oxygens on both sides than their are carbons.
There are more oxygens on both sides than their are carbons.

There are more carbons on the reactant side than on the product side.
There are more carbons on the reactant side than on the product side.

There are fewer hydrogens in water than there should be, the subscript should be changed.
There are fewer hydrogens in water than there should be, the subscript should be changed.

There are more hydrogen and oxygen atoms on the reactant side than on the product side.

Answer 1

The correct statement describing why the chemical equation is not balanced is:

**There are more hydrogen and oxygen atoms on the reactant side than on the product side.**

To elaborate, in the given reaction:

- Reactants:
- **1 carbon (C)** from CH₄
- **4 hydrogens (H)** from CH₄
- **4 oxygens (O)** from 2 O₂ (2 × 2 = 4)

Total in reactants: 1 C, 4 H, 4 O

- Products:
- **1 carbon (C)** from CO₂
- **2 oxygens (O)** from CO₂
- **2 hydrogens (H)** from H₂O
- **1 oxygen (O)** from H₂O

Total in products: 1 C, 2 H, 3 O (2 from H₂O and 2 from CO₂)

As observed, there are more oxygen and hydrogen atoms in the reactants than in the products, making the equation unbalanced. Therefore, the equation does not properly represent the conservation of mass.