Question

there is no oxygen in space for humans to breathe, so, astronauts living in space use electricity to break down water into hydrogen gas and oxygen gas, consider the following reaction: some amount of water (h₂o) breaks down to produce 12 molecules of hydrogen (h₂) and 6 molecules of oxygen (o₂). complete the table below. during this reaction, how many molecules of water (h₂o) react?

Explanation:

Step1: Calculate the number of \( H \) atoms

Each \( H_2 \) molecule has \( 2 \) \( H \) atoms. There are \( 12 \) \( H_2 \) molecules. So the number of \( H \) atoms is \( 12\times2=24 \).

Step2: Calculate the number of \( O \) atoms

Each \( O_2 \) molecule has \( 2 \) \( O \) atoms. There are \( 6 \) \( O_2 \) molecules. So the number of \( O \) atoms is \( 6\times2 = 12 \).

Step3: Determine the number of \( H_2O \) molecules

Each \( H_2O \) molecule has \( 2 \) \( H \) atoms and \( 1 \) \( O \) atom. Since there are \( 24 \) \( H \) atoms (which would come from \( 12 \) \( H_2O \) molecules as \( 24\div2=12 \)) and \( 12 \) \( O \) atoms (which would also come from \( 12 \) \( H_2O \) molecules as \( 12\div1 = 12 \)). So the number of \( H_2O \) molecules is \( 12 \).

Answer:

For the table:

• \( H \): \( 24 \)
• \( O \): \( 12 \)

For the number of water molecules: \( 12 \)