Question

Sodium chlorate, NaClO3, decomposes when heated to yield sodium chloride and oxygen, a reaction used to provide oxygen for the emergency breathing masks in many airliners. Balance the equation. Express your answer as a chemical equation.

Answer 1

Sodium chlorate decomposes into sodium chloride and oxygen.
The reaction is
NaClO3 --Δ--> NaCl + O2
The Δ means that heat is used
This equation is still not balanced.
Balancing the equation
2NaClO3 --Δ--> 2NaCl + 3O2
The equation is now balanced.