ShmoopTube

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Here's your shmoop du jour, brought to you by Hot Tea.

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If you spill it in your lap, it will burn for an Oolong time.

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Damon decides to make a cup of hot tea by heating water with a gas stove.

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The gas stove works through a combustion reaction involving methane gas, or CH4, and oxygen gas.

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Which of the following sets of coefficients correctly balances the below equation in the

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lowest whole number ratio?

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And here are your potential answers...

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So this question is asking us to find the lowest whole number ratio to balance the equation.

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If we take a quick look at the answers first, we know C can't be the right answer because

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2, 4, 2, and 4 can be reduced to 1, 2, 1, and 2 by dividing all the numbers by 2.

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So we can immediately eliminate C.

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Now, let's figure out what will make this equation work. Other than, you know... offering

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it a possible raise.

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Well, in chemistry, according to the law of conservation of mass, there needs to be the

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same number of atoms of each element on both sides of the equation.

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Which means we can treat the arrow like an equals sign.

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For this equation, we know there needs to be the same number of Carbon, Oxygen, and

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Hydrogen atoms on the right side of the arrow as there are on the left.

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To do this, we can place coefficients in front of the formulas to try to get equal numbers.

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Let's try A. If we had 1, 1, 1, and 1...we'd have 1 Carbon on both sides, 4 hydrogens on

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the left and 2 on the right...ok, we can stop there. That doesn't work.

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B... 1, 2, 1, and 2. 1 Carbon on both sides, 4 hydrogens on the left and 2 times 2 for

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4 hydrogens on the right.

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2 times 2 is 4 for 4 oxygens on the left...and 2 plus 2 for 4 oxygens on the right.

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The coefficients in answer B give us the same number of atoms on the left and right... which

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is going to save us a bit of busy work.

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Looks like B's our answer.

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Now for Damon's next big task: getting the honey for his tea directly from the source...

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