Given: N₂H₅⁺(aq) $\rarr$ N₂(g). How many electrons appear in the balanced half-reaction?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The given reaction is a shorthand for a redox reaction involving uranium. The uranium goes from an oxidation state of +6 in UO2^2+ (implied by "B12" for uranium and "B0" for oxygen in a compound, with "S1U1" indicating one uranium atom and "B15" and "B0" indicating the presence of hydrogen and oxygen in water, respectively) to an oxidation state of +4 in UO2 (implied by "B12" for uranium and "B0" for oxygen in a gas). This change represents a reduction of uranium by 2 oxidation states, requiring 2 electrons per uranium atom. However, the notation suggests this process involves two uranium atoms (implied by the stoichiometry of the reactants and products), thus a total of 4 electrons are involved in the balanced half-reaction.

Given: N2H5+(aq) →\rarr→ N2(g)

Given: N₂H₅⁺(aq) $\rarr$ N₂(g)