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.

1 answer

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