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Question

How to determine the state of mater during balancing of equation?

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Solution

Finding and Identifying States of Matter 1

Locate the parentheses after the chemical formula, whether or not it is within the context of an equation.


2

Identify the parentheses as (s) for solid, (l) for liquid, (g) for gas, or (aq) for aqueous solution. An aqueous solution is a substance dissolved in water.


3

If no parentheses follow the chemical formula, look for key words or phrases. These are especially helpful in the context of chemical reactions. For example, a precipitate is a solid, a combustion reaction produces water and carbon dioxide in their gaseous forms, and in solubility experiments, ions are in aqueous solution.

Look for the notation (s), (l), (g) or (aq) in a chemical formula, regardless of whether it is in the context of an equation. This text tells you the state of matter of the molecule -- solid, liquid, gas or aqueous solution. The term aqueous solution refers to a substance dissolved in water. For example, NaCl(aq) is table salt dissolved in water. The letter in parentheses will always be after the chemical formula.

Look for context clues if no state of matter is written after the chemical formula. You might have a description of an equation, such as “two sodium atoms dissolve in water to produce aqueous sodium hydroxide and hydrogen gas.” You can discern the states of matter from the text.

Learn “rules” about common molecules that will likely be in one state of matter if no parenthetical state is notated. For example, if you know a substance is an ionic compound, you know it will likely be a solid because ionic compounds in their standard state, or 25 degrees Celsius and 1 atmosphere, are solids; an exception to this rule is the case when the ionic compound is dissolved in water. Precipitates in a reaction will always be solid. In combustion reactions, if a hydrocarbon burns with sufficient oxygen supply, carbon dioxide gas and water vapor are released as products.


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