combustion+reactions.+(teaching+wiki..)


 * COMBUSTION REACTIONS**

//what happens:// the result of a combustion reaction is almost self explanatory; a substance reacts with oxygen and //combusts//, heat and light are released and for one or more oxides. the reactants of a combustion reaction are always oxygen and an element or compound that includes hydrogen or carbon. the product is always an oxide, most often water or carbon dioxide.

//generic form of a combustion reaction:// A + O2 --> AO is a very generic form of a combustion reaction. less generic, though more accurate would be; __A + O2 --> CO2 + H2O__.

EXAMPLE EQUATION //equation in sentence form:// hydrogen and oxygen react to form water. //change into formula equation:// hydrogen is H, oxygen is O, and water, the most common and well known chemical formula, is H20. __H + O --> H2O__

//balancing the equation:// hydrogen and oxygen are both diatomic elements, so alone, they are written with a subscript of 2. H2 + 02 --> H20 but now there are two oxygens on the reactant side and only one on the product side, so H20 needs a coefficient of 2. H2 + 02 --> 2H20 but now there are four hydrogens on one side, and only two on the other, hydrogen needs a coefficient of 2. __2H2 + O2 --> 2H2O__, is now balanced.



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