Complete and balance the equation for the chemical reaction that occurs when a piece of sodium is added to ethanol: C₂H₅OH + Na → - Leaving Cert Chemistry - Question 6 - 2013
Question 6
Complete and balance the equation for the chemical reaction that occurs when a piece of sodium is added to ethanol: C₂H₅OH + Na →
Worked Solution & Example Answer:Complete and balance the equation for the chemical reaction that occurs when a piece of sodium is added to ethanol: C₂H₅OH + Na → - Leaving Cert Chemistry - Question 6 - 2013
Step 1
Complete the reaction: C₂H₅OH + Na →
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Answer
When sodium reacts with ethanol (C₂H₅OH), it forms sodium ethoxide (C₂H₅ONa) and hydrogen gas (H₂). The unbalanced reaction can be written as:
C2H5OH+Na→C2H5ONa+H2
Step 2
Balance the equation: C₂H₅OH + Na → C₂H₅ONa + H₂
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Answer
To balance the equation, we note that one sodium atom reacts with one ethanol molecule to produce one sodium ethoxide molecule and one hydrogen molecule. Thus, the balanced equation is:
2C2H5OH+2Na→2C2H5ONa+H2
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