what is the purpose of balancing a chemical equation

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The reason for balancing equations in chemistry is toobtain the correct proportions of reagents and products for a given reaction. Since chemical reactions do not change the atoms themselves, a balanced equation tells you how much product to expect for a given set of reagents. Click to see full answer.

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Balancing chemical equations involves the addition of stoichiometric coefficients to the reactants and products. This is important because a chemical equation must obey the law of conservation of mass and the law of constant proportions, i.e. the same number of atoms of each element must exist on the reactant side and the product side …

Creating a balanced equation rather than using a skeletal equation is very important, as the number of atoms in a chemical compound always remains the same. Atoms cannot be added to or disappear from an equation.

It is called balancing by inspection. Basically, you look at how many atoms you have on each side of the equation and add coefficients to the molecules to balance out the number of atoms. Balance atoms present in a single molecule of reactant and product first. Balance any oxygen or hydrogen atoms last.

Every chemical equation adheres to the law of conservation of mass, which states that matter cannot be created or destroyed. Use coefficients of products and reactants to balance the number of atoms of an element on both sides of a chemical equation.