Question

What is the balanced equation for sugar+oxygen burning to carbon dioxide+water?

Answer 1

Sugars are a white crystalline group of soluble carbohydrates that are very sweet-tasting in nature. Sugar molecules include glucose, fructose, sucrose, lactose, maltose, and galactose, classified into two groups: monosaccharides and disaccharides.

Glucose - `C_6H_12O_6` - is a monosaccharide and its combustion reaction is

`C_6H_12O_6 + 9O_2 -> 6CO_2 + 6H_2O`

Sucrose (`C_12H_22O_11`) - commonly called table sugar - is a disaccharide produced as glucose and fructose are joined together by a condensation reaction:

`C_6H_12O_6 + C_6H_12O_6 -> C_12H_22O_11 + H_2O`

Sucrose's combustion reaction is

`C_12H_22O_11 + 12O_2 -> 12CO_2 + 11H_2O`