Question

whats a stoichiometric equation?

Answer 1

The quantitative relationship among reactants and products is called stoichiometry. The term stoichiometry is derived from two Greek words: stoicheion (meaning "element") and metron (meaning "measure"). On this subject, you often are required to calculate quantities of reactants or products.

Stoichiometry calculations/equations are based on the fact that atoms are conserved. They cannot be destroyed or created. Numbers and kinds of atoms before and after the reactions are always the same. This is the basic law of nature.

From the atomic and molecular point of view, the stoichiometry in a chemical reaction is very simple. However, atoms of different elements and molecules of different substances have different weights. Thus, simple stoichiometry at the atomic level appears to be complicated when amounts (quantities) are measured in units of g, kg, L or mL. When quantities in moles are used, the relationships (or ratios) are really simple. For example, one mole of oxygen reacts with two moles of hydrogen,

2 H2 + O2 -> 2 H2O
or one mole of hydrogen reacts with half a mole of oxygen,
H2 + ½ O2 -> H2O