An online stoichiometry calculator is used to find out the stoichiometric coefficients which are used to balance a given chemical equation and the compute amounts of the products and the reactants of the reaction, both in grams and the moles. Also, these equations might include the electrically charged molecules ie. ions and free electrons and the hydrated compounds. This means that in case the original equation was not balanced, the field with this particular equation is highlighted in the light pink colour.
The stoichiometry reaction gets calculated automatically for an equation that is balanced, with the number of the moles for the compounds being the same as the stoichiometric coefficients. So you can either enter the required weight or the number of moles in grams for one of the compounds in the field that is corresponding to it. Then, just press the key that says ‘Enter’ to compute the new values for the rest of the compounds.
Now, as there is a lot more about it, so as you scroll down, you will find out all the details about what exactly are the stoichiometry calculations, what are the key points of the syntax guide, how exactly to use this calculator, what are the different output formats and many more. So keep reading to find out all the related information.
What exactly are stoichiometry calculations?
Stoichiometry is one of the fields of chemistry which studies the relative amounts of the products and the reactants in the chemical reactions. For any of the balanced equations, the stoichiometric coefficients (whole numbers) are used to depict the amount in moles of both the products and the reactants.
The first step which is involved in solving the stoichiometric calculations through the stoichiometry calculator is to balance the chemical equation. And so, each side of the chemical equation should be representing an equal amount of atoms of a chemical element. And in case of the ionic reactions, the same electric charge should be presented on both sides of the equation.
There are various elimination algorithms that are used to solve a set of linear equations such as Gauss-Jordan etc.
Details of the syntax guide of stoichiometry calculator
Following are the key points of the syntax guide-
- In a chemical reaction, the products and the reactants are separated by an equal sign (=) and the substances are separated by the plus (+) sign.
- The asterisk (*) and the middle dot (.) must be added before the water molecule formula in a hydrated compound. For eg. CuSO4.5H2O.
- The substance’s formula must be entered using the upper case for the first character in the name of the element and the lower case for the character second (like you can compare- Co- cobalt and CO- carbon monoxide). Also, there must be no numerical coefficient before the formula.
- For denoting an ion, you should specify the charge in the curly brackets after the compound such as: {+2} or {2+}. For eg. H{+}+CO3{2-}=H2O+CO2.
- The indices must be entered in the form of the normal numbers after the appropriate groups or the elements. For eg. H2O for a molecule of water or (NH4)2SO4 for the ammonium sulphate.
- When you want to indicate an electron into a chemical equation, you must use {-}. For eg. Fe{+3} + {-} = Fe.
- The square brackets [ ], parentheses ( ) and the braces (the curly brackets) { } can be used in the formulas. The nested brackets are also allowed to be used. Eg. [Co(NH3)6]CI3. Also, all the brackets must be balanced and the degree of the nesting is unlimited.
How to use a stoichiometry calculator?
When you enter a chemical equation by pasting the copied equation or by entering it manually, the calculator automatically converts it to the normal form which is according to the rules mentioned above. Now, all the spaces will be ignored and the symbol ‘arrow’ is converted to the ‘=’, but the symbols ‘up facing arrow’ and ‘down facing arrow’ remain the same and in place.
Now, you must note that the both of the indices and the charges can be denoted in the source document by using two html tags: <sub></sub> and the <sup></sup>. For eg. SO4-2 or it can be denoted by using some tiny symbol like SO4-2 (in small). Now, these also get converted to the normal form automatically by the calculator.
Also, a single electron can be denoted as e- (with the tiny minus) or e- (e<sup>-</sup>).
Choosing the Output Format
One can choose an output format for the balanced chemical equation in the stoichiometry calculator by using the appropriate drop-down menu. So the options are as follow:
- Small Indices- The balanced equation is represented by using the tiny symbols for the charges and the indices. For eg., CO3-2 where the unicode characters are used like- (3) = (/u2083), (2) = (/u00B2) and (-) = (/u207B). Here, the single electron is denoted as e-.
- Html- In this, the balance equation is represented by using the html tags for the charges and the indices. A single electron will be represented as e-. By clicking the ‘copy’ to the button of ‘clipboard’, you can easily copy the result ‘as is’, including all the tags and then you can just paste it into any of the html page. However, if you click Ctrl+A and Ctrl=C, you can easily copy the result and then paste it into the DOC document without any of the tags which keeps the charges and indices duty formatted.
- Normal- In this, the balanced equation is represented according to the above details mentioned in the syntax guide.
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Conclusion
Stoichiometry calculator is the tool which is used to find out the stoichiometric coefficients for balancing any chemical equation and to compute the amounts of the reactants and the products of the reaction. So, above mentioned are the complete details of its related calculations, key points of syntax guide, about using the calculator and all the output formats. So go now and try it out yourself.