Question

NaOH (aq) + H2SO4 (aq) > H2O + NaSO4 (aq)

Answer 1

Answer:

$2 NaOH (aq) + H_2SO_4 (aq)\rightarrow 2 H_2O (l) + Na_2SO_4 (aq)$

Explanation:

Let's correct and balance the given equation:

• $NaOH (aq)$ is sodium hydroxide, charge of sodium is +1, charge of hydroxide is -1, so it's fine;
• $H_2SO_4 (aq)$ is sulfuric acid, charge of hydrogen cation is +1, charge of sulfate is -2, sulfate is balanced by the two protons;
• $H_2O (l)$ is firstly a molecule, it's water, in its liquid state, the oxidation state of +1 for the two hydrogens is balanced by the oxidation state of -2 for oxygen;
• sodium sulfate should be $Na_2SO_4 (aq)$, since sulfate has a charge of -2, this would require two sodium cations to balance it.

The equation becomes:

$NaOH (aq) + H_2SO_4 (aq)\rightarrow H_2O (l) + Na_2SO_4 (aq)$

We require 2 NaOH in order to balance the two sodium cations on the right, this would yield a total of 4 hyrogens on the left, so we also need two water molecules to balance it fully:

$2 NaOH (aq) + H_2SO_4 (aq)\rightarrow 2 H_2O (l) + Na_2SO_4 (aq)$