Alightextra

=Telling them Apart=

Okay, we now know all five chemical reaction types... but how can we tell them apart, and whats just a brief overview of the differences?

Synthesis will always begin

A+B-->

Decomp will always begin

AB-->

Single Displacement will always begin

A + BC-->

Double Displacement will always begin

AB + BC-->

and combustion will always have H20 and/or CO2

?? + ?? --> H2O + CO2

So if you have the equation

Cu +2Ag(NO3) -->

without anyone having to tell you, you should expect to see:

Cu + 2Ag(NO3) --> Ag + Cu(N03)

because Cu + 2Ag(NO3) is following A +BC form, which is single displacement.

see? knowing the reactants you can now tell what kind of reaction it is before you even know the products. amazing.

what about combustion? well combustion you just need to look for H20 and C02 really. besides that theres nothing that (on paper) distinguishes it from the other reactions that well.

Heres a little table you can print out to study or use if you ever need to.


 * Reaction || Basic Equation ||
 * Synthesis || A+B --> ||
 * Decompisition || AB --> ||
 * Single Displacement || A + BC --> ||
 * Double Displacement || AB + CD --> ||
 * Combustion || --> H20 or CO2 ||

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