How to Balance

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Co-Authored
Chemical Equations
A chemical equation is a written
symbolic representation of a
chemical reaction. The reactant
chemical(s) are given on the left-hand
side and the product chemical(s) on
the right-hand side. The two are
connected with an arrow leading
from the left to the right, symbolizing
the reaction. The law of conservation
of mass states that no atoms can be
created or destroyed in a chemical
reaction, so the number of atoms that
are present in the reactants has to
balance the number of atoms that are
present in the products. Follow this
guide to learn how to balance
chemical equations differently.

Method One of Two:

Traditional Balance

1 Write down your given

equation. For this example,
you will use:
 C3H8 + O2 --> H2O + CO2
This reaction occurs when
propane (C3H8) is burned in
the presence of oxygen to
produce water and carbon
dioxide.

Write down the number of atoms

2 per element. Do this for each
side of the equation. Look at
the subscripts next to each atom
to find the number of atoms in the
equation. When writing it out, it's a
good idea to connect it back to the
original equation, noting how each
element appears.

For example, you have 3

oxygen atoms on the right
side, but that total results
from addition.
Left side: 3 carbon (C3), 8
hydrogen (H8) and 2 oxygen
(O2).
Right side: 1 carbon (C), 2
hydrogen (H2) and 3 oxygen
 (O + O2).

3 Save hydrogen and oxygen

for last, as they are often on
both sides. Hydrogen and oxygen
are both common in molecules, so
it's likely that you'll have them on
both sides of your equation. It's
best to balance them last.

You'll need to recount your

atoms before balancing the
hydrogen and oxygen, as
you'll likely need to use
coefficients to balance the
other atoms in the equation.
4 Start with single elements. If
you have more than one
element left to balance, select the
element that appears in only a
single molecule of reactants and
in only a single molecule of
products. This means that you will
need to balance the carbon atoms
first.
5 Use a coefficient to balance
the single carbon atom. Add a
coefficient to the single carbon
atom on the right of the equation
to balance it with the 3 carbon
atoms on the left of the equation.

C3H8 + O2 --> H2O + 3CO2

The coefficient 3 in front of
carbon on the right side
indicates 3 carbon atoms just
as the subscript 3 on the left
side indicates 3 carbon
atoms.
In a chemical equation, you
can change coefficients, but
you must never alter the
subscripts.
6 Balance the hydrogen atoms
next. Since you have
balanced all atoms besides the
hydrogen and oxygen, you can
address the hydrogen atoms. You
have 8 on the left side. So you'll
need 8 on the right side. Use a
coefficient to achieve this.
C3H8 + O2 --> 4H2O + 3CO2
On the right side, you now
added a 4 as the coefficient
because the subscript
showed that you already had
2 hydrogen atoms.
When you multiply the
coefficient 4 times by the
subscript 2, you end up with 8.
The other 6 atoms of oxygen
come from 3CO2.(3x2=6
atoms of oxygen+ the other
4=10)
7 Balance the oxygen atoms.
Remember to account for the
coefficients that you've used to
balance out the other atoms.
Because you've added coefficients
to the molecules on the right side
of the equation, the number of
oxygen atoms has changed. You
now have 4 oxygen atoms in the
water molecules and 6 oxygen
atoms in the carbon dioxide
molecules. That makes a total of
10 oxygen atoms.

Add a coefficient of 5 to the

oxygen molecule on the left
side of the equation. You now
have 10 oxygen atoms on
each side.
C3H8 + 5O2 --> 4H2O + 3CO2.
 The carbon, hydrogen, and
oxygen atoms are balanced.
Your equation is complete.

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Method Two of Two:

Algebraic Balance

1 Write down the given

equation. For this example,
we will use:

PCl5 + H2O --> H3PO4 + HCl

Assign a letter to each substance.

2
aPCl5 + bH2O --> cH3PO4 +
dHCl

3 Check the number of each

element found on both sides,
and set those equal to each other.

aPCl5 + bH2O --> cH3PO4 +

dHCl
On the left side, there are 2b
atoms of hydrogen (2 for
every molecule of H2O), while
on the right side, there are
3c+d atoms of hydrogen (3 for
every molecule of H3PO4 and
 1 for every molecule of HCl).
Since the number of atoms of
hydrogen has to be equal on
both sides, 2b must be equal
to 3c+d.
Do this for every element.

P: a=c
Cl: 5a=d
H: 2b=3c+d

4 Solve this system of

equations to get the numeric
value for the coefficients. Since
there are more variables than
equations, there are multiple
solutions. You must find the one
where every variable is in its
smallest, non-fractional form.

To quickly do this, take one

variable and assign a value to
it. Let's make a=1. Then start
solving the system of
equations to get the following
values:
Since P: a = c, we know that c
= 1.
Since Cl: 5a = d, we know that
d=5
Since H: 2b = 3c + d, we can
calculate b like this:

2b = 3(1) + 5
2b = 3 + 5
2b = 8
 b=4
This shows us the values are
as follows:

a=1
b=4
c=1
d=5

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Community Q&A

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Question
How did the oxygen became 7
when 3x2 is 6? Do you always
add one?
wikiHow Contributor
Community Answer
You get 3x2=6 oxygen
atoms in the carbon
dioxide, but at this stage
there is also 1 oxygen
atom in the water. So,
6+1=7.
Question
How do I understand this
information?
wikiHow Contributor
Community Answer
Read the steps carefully
and keep a notebook and a
 pen with you during
reading the steps. After
reading the steps, write
each step one by one "in
your own words", noting it
in your notebook one by
one and using the picture
to enhance your
comprehension.
Question
How can I balance NaCl +
AgNo3 -> AgCl + NaNO3?
wikiHow Contributor
Community Answer
This equation is already
balanced when using the
first method (Traditional
 balance) in the article.
Question
How can I balance Na2CO3 +
HCl -> NaCl + H2CO3?
wikiHow Contributor
Community Answer
First multiply NaCl by 2,
since you have 2 Na on the
reactant side. Na2CO3 +
HCl -> 2NaCl + H2CO3.
Then, since there are now
2 Cl in the product side,
multiply HCl by 2. This also
has the effect of balancing
the hydrogen, and the
equation is now balanced
as Na2CO3 + 2HCl ->
 2NaCl + H2CO3.
Question
What causes the color of copper
sulphate to change when an iron
nail is dipped into it?
wikiHow Contributor
Community Answer
When iron (Fe) and copper
sulphate (CuSO4) solution
react, they undergo a
single displacement
reaction, also known as a
substitution reaction, to
form solid copper (Cu) and
aqueous iron sulphate
(FeSO4). The iron can be
solid or aqueous but the
 copper sulphate must be
aqueous in order to
facilitate the reaction.
Question
How do I balance hgo = hg+o2?
wikiHow Contributor
Community Answer
HgO -> Hg + O2. Multiply
the left side by 2 to get 2
Oxygen. 2HgO -> Hg + O2.
Then multiply Hg on the
right by 2. Et voilà! We get
the balanced 2HgO -> 2Hg
+ O2.
Question
On step 7 it says you now have 6
oxygen atoms in the carbon
dioxide molecule do I times the
3 to get 6?
wikiHow Contributor
Community Answer
Yes. You multiply the
subscript by the number
that was put out in front.
So CO2 has one carbon
and two oxygen atoms
(pretend the 2 is
subscript), while 3(CO2)
has 3 carbon and six
oxygen atoms. If it helps
(and again, pretend that all
the numbers in this
equation are subscript),
CO2=C1O2. You always
multiply the number in
 front by the subscript and
if there is none, it means
that the subscript is equal
to 1.
Question
How can we assume a=1. It can
be anything right?
wikiHow Contributor
Community Answer
It is a balanced equation.
We don't assume anything,
the writer chose to give
you the answer of "a" for
use in this example. If you
did not know a=1, then it
could theoretically be
anything.
Question
Why does a = c for the algebraic
method?
wikiHow Contributor
Community Answer
According to the law of
conservation of mass, the
amount of P will be the
same on both sides. So the
amount of P as a reactant
(a), will be the same as the
amount of the product of P
(c).
Question
What is the action of diluted
nitric acid on magnesium?
wikiHow Contributor
 Community Answer
Magnesium will react with
diluted nitric acid to
produce magnesium
nitrate and hydrogen gas.

Tips

If you're stuck, you can type the

equation into the online balancer
to balance it. Just remember
that you won't have access to an
online balancer when you're
taking an exam, so don't
become dependent on it.
Remember to simplify! If all of
your coefficients can be divided
 by the same number, do so to
get the simplest result.

Warnings

To get rid of fractions, multiply

the entire equation (both the left
and right sides) by the number
in the denominator of your
fraction.
Never use fractions as
coefficients in a chemical
equation--you never make half
of a molecule or half of an atom
in a chemical reaction.
During the balancing process,
you may use fractions to assist
 you, but the equation is not
balanced as long as there are
still coefficients using fractions.

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About This Article

BR
Bess Ruff
MA in Environmental Science and
Management
This version of How to Balance Chemical
Equations was expert co-authored by Bess
Ruff on July 20, 2018. Learn more...
191 votes - 72%
Co-authors: 142
Updated:
Views: 3,113,379
Categories: Chemistry

Article Summary
1. Write down the number of atoms
in each element in the equation.

2. Start with the element that

appears in a single molecule of
reactants and in a single molecule
of products.

3. Balance the element by adding a

coefficient to it on the right so it has
the same number of atoms as it
does on the left.
 4. Repeat with the remaining
elements in the equation. When
you're finished, each element on the
left side of the equation should
have the same atoms as the
corresponding element on the right.

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Jan 4
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