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### In the process of balancing the equation  \ma…

03:36
University of Maine

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Problem 53

How does a balanced chemical equation apply the law of conservation of mass?

total number of atoms on reactant side equal total number of atoms on product side; mass is neither created nor destroyed

## Discussion

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## Video Transcript

chemical equations must be balanced in order to demonstrate the car with law of conservation of Mass. When we balance a chemical equation, it means that the number of atoms on the reactant side must equal the total number of of Adams. On the product side, this means that Adams can't be created or destroyed, which is what the law of Conservation of Mass says. So, for example, you might have a reaction combining magnesium and oxygen to form magnesium oxide. On this side, there's one magnesium and to oxygen's. On this side, the product side there's one magnesium and only one oxygen. So the question is, what happened to that other oxygen? Was it destroyed? But really, the correct balance equation is found by changing the mole ratios, or the coefficients become in front of each substance. So while it's still a magnesium reacting with oxygen to make magnesium oxide, we change the ratios here, the coefficients to say two moles of magnesium react with one mole of oxygen to make two moles of magnesium oxide, and you can see on this side there are two magnesium and to oxygen's and on this side, because the two is a multiplier For each. There are two magnesium and to oxygen's. So in the balanced equation you can see that all Adams are accounted for and the Law of Conservation of Mass is followed.