Balance the chemical equation

Balance the chemical equation: NH3 + O2 -> N2 +H2O

The Correct Answer and Explanation is:

Let’s balance the chemical equation:

Unbalanced equation:
NH3+O2→N2+H2ONH_3 + O_2 \rightarrow N_2 + H_2ONH3+O2→N2+H2O

Step 1: Balance the Nitrogen (N) atoms

On the left side, there is 1 nitrogen atom in NH3NH_3NH3 and on the right side, there are 2 nitrogen atoms in N2N_2N2.
To balance nitrogen, place a coefficient of 2 in front of NH3NH_3NH3:

2NH3+O2→N2+H2O2NH_3 + O_2 \rightarrow N_2 + H_2O2NH3+O2→N2+H2O

Now, there are 2 nitrogen atoms on both sides.

Step 2: Balance the Hydrogen (H) atoms

On the left side, there are 6 hydrogen atoms from 2 molecules of NH3NH_3NH3 (since each NH3NH_3NH3 has 3 hydrogen atoms).
On the right side, each H2OH_2OH2O molecule contains 2 hydrogen atoms. So, we need 3 molecules of water to have 6 hydrogen atoms.

2NH3+O2→N2+3H2O2NH_3 + O_2 \rightarrow N_2 + 3H_2O2NH3+O2→N2+3H2O

Now, the hydrogen atoms are balanced.

Step 3: Balance the Oxygen (O) atoms

On the right side, there are 3 oxygen atoms (from 3 molecules of H2OH_2OH2O).
On the left side, oxygen comes from O2O_2O2, which means we need 1.5 molecules of O2O_2O2 to supply 3 oxygen atoms.

2NH3+1.5O2→N2+3H2O2NH_3 + 1.5O_2 \rightarrow N_2 + 3H_2O2NH3+1.5O2→N2+3H2O

Step 4: Eliminate the fraction

To eliminate the fraction, multiply the entire equation by 2:

4NH3+3O2→2N2+6H2O4NH_3 + 3O_2 \rightarrow 2N_2 + 6H_2O4NH3+3O2→2N2+6H2O

Now the equation is balanced, with 4 nitrogen atoms, 12 hydrogen atoms, and 6 oxygen atoms on both sides.

Final balanced equation: