To determine if the chemical equation is balanced, we can count the number of each type of atom on both sides of the equation:
Reactants (Left Side):
- CH₄: 1 Carbon (C), 4 Hydrogens (H)
- 2 O₂: 4 Oxygens (O)
Total:
- Carbons: 1
- Hydrogens: 4
- Oxygens: 4
Products (Right Side):
- CO₂: 1 Carbon (C), 2 Oxygens (O)
- H₂O: 2 Hydrogens (H), 1 Oxygen (O)
Total:
- Carbons: 1
- Hydrogens: 2
- Oxygens: 3
Now we can summarize:
- Carbons: 1 (left) = 1 (right) ✔
- Hydrogens: 4 (left) ≠ 2 (right) ✖
- Oxygens: 4 (left) ≠ 3 (right) ✖
The equation is not balanced because there are more hydrogens (4) on the left side than on the right side (2), and there are also more oxygens (4) on the left side compared to the right (3).
Thus, the correct statement would be that there are more hydrogen and oxygen atoms on the left side than the right side.
Final Answer: There are more hydrogen and oxygen atoms on the left side than the right side.