Balancing Equations

Let’s balance the equation, N₂+H₂ -> NH₃. There are two atoms of nitrogen and hydrogen on the left side and one nitrogen atom and three hydrogen atoms on the right side. First balance the atoms in the compound, NH₃. Place a 2 in front of NH₃ which now makes it 2 atoms of N and 6 atoms of H on the right side of the equation. This balances the N atoms on each side of the equation but not the H. By placing a 3 in front of the H atom on the left side, it increases the H atoms on the left side of the equation to 6, which makes it equal to the number of H atoms on the right side. The equation is now balanced. It tells us that 1 molecule of nitrogen combines with 3 molecules of hydrogen to produce 2 molecules of ammonia.