Question

1. analyze the problem

you are given the reactants and products in a chemical reaction. start with a skeleton equation, and use the steps given in table 2 for balancing chemical equations.

1. solve for the unknown

write the skeleton equation for the chemical reaction. be sure to put the reactants on the left side of the arrow and the products on the right. separate the substances with plus signs, and indicate their physical states.
naoh (aq) + cabr₂ (aq) → ca(oh)₂ (s) + nabr (aq)
1 na, 1 o, 1 h, 1 ca, 2 br count the atoms of each element in the reactants.
1 na, 2 o, 2 h, 1 ca, 1 br count the atoms of each element in the products.
2naoh + cabr₂ → ca(oh)₂ + nabr put the coefficient 2 in front of naoh to balance the hydroxide ions.
2naoh + cabr₂ → ca(oh)₂ + 2nabr put the coefficient 2 in front of nabr to balance the na and br atoms.
the ratio of the coefficients is 2:1:1:2. write the coefficients in their lowest-possible ratio.
reactants: 2 na, 2 oh, 1 ca, 2 br
products: 2 na, 2 oh, 1 ca, 2 br check to make sure that the number of atoms of each element is equal on both sides of the equation.

1. evaluate the answer

the chemical formulas for all substances are written correctly.
the number of atoms of each element is equal on both sides of the equation. the coefficients are written in the lowest possible ratio. the balanced chemical equation for the reaction is
2naoh (aq) + cabr₂ (aq) → ca(oh)₂ (s) + 2nabr (aq)

Explanation:

The problem involves balancing a chemical reaction between sodium hydroxide and calcium bromide. The steps include counting atoms on reactant and product sides, adjusting coefficients to balance elements (e.g., adding 2 to NaOH for hydroxide ions, 2 to NaBr for Na and Br), verifying equal atom counts, and confirming lowest coefficient ratios.

Answer:

2NaOH (aq) + CaBr₂ (aq) → Ca(OH)₂ (s) + 2NaBr (aq)