Input interpretation
C activated charcoal + Cr_2O_3 chromium(III) oxide ⟶ CO carbon monoxide + Cr chromium
Balanced equation
Balance the chemical equation algebraically: C + Cr_2O_3 ⟶ CO + Cr Add stoichiometric coefficients, c_i, to the reactants and products: c_1 C + c_2 Cr_2O_3 ⟶ c_3 CO + c_4 Cr Set the number of atoms in the reactants equal to the number of atoms in the products for C, Cr and O: C: | c_1 = c_3 Cr: | 2 c_2 = c_4 O: | 3 c_2 = c_3 Since the coefficients are relative quantities and underdetermined, choose a coefficient to set arbitrarily. To keep the coefficients small, the arbitrary value is ordinarily one. For instance, set c_2 = 1 and solve the system of equations for the remaining coefficients: c_1 = 3 c_2 = 1 c_3 = 3 c_4 = 2 Substitute the coefficients into the chemical reaction to obtain the balanced equation: Answer: | | 3 C + Cr_2O_3 ⟶ 3 CO + 2 Cr
Structures
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