Question

balance the following chemical equation (if necessary):
v₂o₅(s) + hcl(aq) → vocl₃(s) + h₂o(l)

Explanation:

Step1: Balance vanadium atoms

On the left side, there are 2 vanadium atoms in \(V_{2}O_{5}\). On the right side, there is 1 vanadium atom in \(VOCl_{3}\). So, we put a coefficient of 2 in front of \(VOCl_{3}\):
\(V_{2}O_{5}(s)+HCl(aq)\to 2VOCl_{3}(s)+H_{2}O(l)\)

Step2: Balance oxygen atoms

On the left side, there are 5 oxygen atoms in \(V_{2}O_{5}\). On the right side, there is 1 oxygen atom in \(H_{2}O\). After step 1, we have 2 oxygen atoms from \(2VOCl_{3}\). So, the number of \(H_{2}O\) molecules should be 5 to balance oxygen atoms (because \(V_{2}O_{5}\) has 5 O atoms). Now the equation is \(V_{2}O_{5}(s)+HCl(aq)\to 2VOCl_{3}(s)+5H_{2}O(l)\)

Step3: Balance hydrogen and chlorine atoms

On the right side, in \(5H_{2}O\) there are 10 H atoms and in \(2VOCl_{3}\) there are 6 Cl atoms. So, we put a coefficient of 10 in front of \(HCl\) to balance H and Cl atoms.

Answer:

\(V_{2}O_{5}(s)+10HCl(aq) = 2VOCl_{3}(s)+5H_{2}O(l)\)