Question

What is the balanced chemical equation for: Liquid methanol (CH3OH) combusted in oxygen gas to yield carbon dioxide gas and liquid water?

Answer 1

The balanced chemical equation for the combustion of liquid methanol in oxygen gas to yield carbon dioxide gas and liquid water is:

`"2""CH"_3"O""H""(l)"` + `"3""O"_2"(g)"` `rarr` `"2""CO"_2"(g)"` + `"4""H"_2"O""(l)"`

If you multiply the coefficients (the numbers in front) times the subscripts for each element in each formula, you will find that there are 2 atoms of carbon, 8 atoms of hydrogen, and 8 atoms of oxygen on both sides of the equation, so it is balanced.