Chemical Reactions
Chemical Reactions
What is a Chemical Reaction?
Types of Chemical Reactions
Redox Reactions
Nonredox Reactions
Classifying Reactions
What is a Chemical Reaction?
A chemical reaction is a process in which the identity of at least one substance changes. A chemical equation represents the total chemical change that occurs in a chemical reaction using symbols and chemical formulas for the substances involved. Reactants are the substances that are changed and products are the substances that are produced in a chemical reaction.
The general format for writing a chemical equation is
reactant1 + reactant2 + … → product1 + product2 + …
With the exception of nuclear reactions, the Law of Conservation of Mass–matter is neither created nor destroyed during a chemical reaction– is obeyed in “ordinary” chemical reactions. For this reason a chemical equation must be balanced–the number of atoms of each element must be the same on the reactants side of the reaction arrow as on the products side. Details on balancing chemical equations are found in the units on Stoichiometry and Redox Reactions.
The general format for writing a chemical equation can be written in a short-hand version as
a A + b B + … → c C + d D + …
where the lower case letters are the stoichiometric coefficients needed to balance a specific equation.
The units on Stoichiometry, Redox Reactions, and Acid-Base Chemistry contain additional background reading, example problems, and information on the topics covered in this unit.
Types of Chemical Reactions
Chemists classify chemical reactions in various ways. Often a major classification is based on whether or not the reaction involves oxidation-reduction. A reaction may be classified asredox in which oxidation and reduction occur or nonredox in which there is no oxidation and reduction occurring.
Redox Reactions
A redox reaction can be recognized by observing whether or not the oxidation numbers of any of the elements change during the
What is a Chemical Reaction?
Types of Chemical Reactions
Redox Reactions
Nonredox Reactions
Classifying Reactions
What is a Chemical Reaction?
A chemical reaction is a process in which the identity of at least one substance changes. A chemical equation represents the total chemical change that occurs in a chemical reaction using symbols and chemical formulas for the substances involved. Reactants are the substances that are changed and products are the substances that are produced in a chemical reaction.
The general format for writing a chemical equation is
reactant1 + reactant2 + … → product1 + product2 + …
With the exception of nuclear reactions, the Law of Conservation of Mass–matter is neither created nor destroyed during a chemical reaction– is obeyed in “ordinary” chemical reactions. For this reason a chemical equation must be balanced–the number of atoms of each element must be the same on the reactants side of the reaction arrow as on the products side. Details on balancing chemical equations are found in the units on Stoichiometry and Redox Reactions.
The general format for writing a chemical equation can be written in a short-hand version as
a A + b B + … → c C + d D + …
where the lower case letters are the stoichiometric coefficients needed to balance a specific equation.
The units on Stoichiometry, Redox Reactions, and Acid-Base Chemistry contain additional background reading, example problems, and information on the topics covered in this unit.
Types of Chemical Reactions
Chemists classify chemical reactions in various ways. Often a major classification is based on whether or not the reaction involves oxidation-reduction. A reaction may be classified asredox in which oxidation and reduction occur or nonredox in which there is no oxidation and reduction occurring.
Redox Reactions
A redox reaction can be recognized by observing whether or not the oxidation numbers of any of the elements change during the