Question

What is a balanced equation for the following reaction: silver + chlorine `->` silver chloride?

Answer 1

`2Ag + Cl_2 -> 2AgCl`

Explanation:

Silver forms an `Ag^(+)` ion and Chlorine gains an electron to form a `Cl^(-)` ion. However, Chlorine exists as diatomic molecules, meaning it goes round in pairs of two chlorine atoms, so the chlorine as a reactant would be `Cl_2`, and thus we need 2 `Ag` atoms to balance it out.

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