Question

What is the purpose of the arrow in a chemical equation?
O A.
It indicates the direction in which the reaction occurs.
Св.
It separates the elements from the compounds.
O C.
It indicates the direction of increase in the number of molecules.
D.
It indicates the direction of heat movement in a reaction.
Reset
Next

Answer 1

Answer:

A) It indicates the direction in which the reaction occurs.

Explanation:

The reason we don't use equals signs (=) in chemical reactions is because of the Identity Property of Equality (if a = b then b = a), which would allow us to reverse reactions. Reactions can't just be reversed (since some don't even occur); we need to know what is reacting to make what. Thus, we use the arrow, or yields symbol to denote this.

The substances to the left of the sign are the reactants, the ones that are reacting, and the ones on the right are the products, the ones that are being produced from the reactants. The arrow is an excellent way to represent the direction the reaction occurs in as the way it's written clearly demonstrates direction.

Hope this helps!