Types of Chemical Reactions: Study with Video Lessons, Practice Problems & Examples

Chemical reactions involve the transformation of reactants into products, categorized into types such as combination, decomposition, combustion, single displacement, and double displacement. In combination reactions, multiple reactants yield one product, while decomposition reactions split one reactant into multiple products. Combustion typically involves hydrocarbons reacting with oxygen to produce water and carbon dioxide. Single displacement sees one element replace another in a compound, and double displacement involves the exchange of ions between two compounds. Understanding these types is crucial for recognizing and solving complex chemical equations.

Types of Chemical Reactions Concept 1

Alright. So chemical reactions are processes where reactants are broken down and reassembled into new products. And we're going to say here that types of chemical reactions are based on the changes reactions undergo and the types of products formed. Now one type of chemical reaction is redox reactions. In these types of chemical reactions, we have the involvement of the transference of electrons between reactants. Now besides redox reactions, we have other types of chemical reactions. So let's take a look here. And the first one we have is combination. In a combination, we have multiple reactants combined to form one product. So here we have sodium solid plus we have ClO aqueous. In a combination reaction, it will just combine together to give me one product. So here we have NaClO. Decomposition can be seen as the opposite of combination. Here we have one reactant splits into multiple products. So here we have H₂O liquid, and depending on how we treat water, we can actually break it up into its elemental, oxygen and hydrogen. So if I run enough power through this, I could change my water liquid into H₂ gas plus O₂ gas. So one reactant has broken up into multiple products. Next, we have what's called combustion. In a combustion reaction, we typically have a compound composed of carbon and hydrogen, or carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen. It reacts with oxygen to produce H₂O and CO₂. So here we have a compound composed of carbon and hydrogen reacting with O₂ to give us CO₂ and water. And here we have another compound now composed of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen, also reacting with oxygen to produce CO₂ and water. Here, we're not too concerned with balancing these chemical reactions. It's more important to be able to recognize which type of chemical reactions we're dealing with. The last 2 we have are single displacement and double displacement. In a single displacement reaction, we're going to say here that a single element replaces another element within a nearby compound. Here we have zinc metal and we have copper sulfate compound. In this example, our zinc metal displaces or removes copper metal. So what we get here is zinc sulfate, plus copper now by itself. So one reactant, a single element replaces another element within a nearby compound. That is a single displacement reaction. Then finally we have a double displacement reaction. Here, we have ions from 2 reacting compounds swap places with each other. So basically we have barium nitrate reacting with sodium sulfate, so barium is going to swap places with sodium, so now barium is with sulfate, and then we have sodium combining with nitrate. And remember, the way we're combining these to make our products is based on our understanding of ionic compounds. If you ever watch my videos on forming ionic compounds, make sure you go back and take a look. So here we have different types of chemical reactions with the key features that each one possesses. So it's important that you remember what makes it a combustion reaction, what makes it a combination reaction, etc. Being able to recognize these types of equations is going to prove very valuable later on when we start doing more complex types of questions.

Types of Chemical Reactions Example 1

Balance the following equation and indicate the type of chemical reaction it represents.

Alright. So if we're going to balance this out, we have ammonium nitrate breaking down to give us dinitrogen monoxide and water. Now on this side, we have nitrogen, hydrogen, and oxygen involved. The polyatomic ions of NH₄ and NO₃ are not found on the other side, so I can't just simply write them down. The other side has N, H, and O as well. Alright. So what we have here initially is we have 2 nitrogens, 4 hydrogens, and 3 oxygens. On the other side we have 2 nitrogens, 2 hydrogens, and 2 oxygens. So my nitrogens are the same, so that's good. Let's keep going. My hydrogens are not, so we're going to have to throw a 2 here. When I do that, that 2 gets distributed to the hydrogen to give me 4. But then I have 2 times 1 is 2 oxygens, plus 1 more is 3. Doing that, now my equation is totally balanced with the coefficient of 1 for ammonium nitrate, 2 for water, and 1 for dinitrogen monoxide.

The balanced chemical reaction is: 1 NH 4 1 NO 3 1 → 1 N 2 1 O + 2 H 2 1 O We balance the equation and also we're going to say that we have one reactant breaking down or decomposing to give us multiple products. Gave me N₂O and water as products. So remember, if you have one reactant breaking down into multiple products, it is an example of decomposition. So here, the answer has to be option B.

Ibuprofen is used as an anti-inflammatory agent used to deal with pain and bring down fevers. If it has a molecular formula of C₁₃H₁₈O₂, determine the balanced combustion reaction when it is subjected to high temperatures.

Here we're told that Ibuprofen is used as an anti-inflammatory agent to deal with pain and bring down fevers. It has a molecular formula of C13H18O2. Determine the balanced combustion reaction when it is subjected to high temperatures. In a combustion reaction, this compound would react with O2, and it would produce water (H2O) plus CO2 as byproducts or as final products. Here, we need to balance this out, so we're going to make a list. We have carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen on this side, carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen on this side. We have 13 carbons, 18 hydrogens, and then 2+2, 4 oxygens. Over here, we have 1 carbon, 2 hydrogens, and 3 oxygens. The numbers don't match for carbon, so what do I do? I have to put a 13 here. That 13 gets distributed to the carbon and to the oxygen. So we have 13 times 2, which is 26, plus one more oxygen is 27. The hydrogens don't match. This side is 18, the other side is 2, so I'm going to throw a 9 here. That 9 gets distributed to the hydrogens to give me 18, but it also gets distributed to the oxygen. So I'm going to have 9 oxygens here, plus the 26 over here with the CO2, for a total of 35. Now, we have to think about how to get 35 on the reactant side. We already account for 2 here. We already have 2 oxygens there. So that means I need 33 more oxygens to get to 35 total on the reactant side. Can't use 16 as a coefficient because 16 times 2 is 32. Can't use 17 because 17 times 2 is 34. So, the number I put here is 16.5. 16.5 times 2 gives me 33. 33 plus these 2 here would give me 35. Remember, we cannot use decimals or fractions when it comes to coefficients. In these cases, we multiply the entire thing by 2. So, all coefficients get multiplied by 2. That'll give me 2 C13H18O2 + 33 O2 gives me 18 H2O + 26 CO2 as my products. This would represent the balanced combustion reaction of Ibuprofen.

Indicate the type of chemical reaction taking place from the following equation:

• A. Combination
• B. Combustion
• C. Single Displacement
• D. Decomposition

Indicate the type of chemical reaction taking place from the following equation:

• A. Decomposition
• B. Double Displacement
• C. Combination
• D. Combustion

Indicate the type of chemical reaction taking place from the following equation:

• A. Single Displacement
• B. Combustion
• C. Redox Reaction
• D. Decomposition

Here’s what students ask on this topic:

What are the different types of chemical reactions?

The different types of chemical reactions include combination, decomposition, combustion, single displacement, and double displacement. In a combination reaction, multiple reactants combine to form one product. Decomposition reactions involve a single reactant breaking down into multiple products. Combustion reactions typically involve hydrocarbons reacting with oxygen to produce water and carbon dioxide. Single displacement reactions occur when one element replaces another in a compound. Double displacement reactions involve the exchange of ions between two compounds. Understanding these types is crucial for recognizing and solving complex chemical equations.

What is a combination reaction and can you provide an example?

A combination reaction is a type of chemical reaction where multiple reactants combine to form a single product. An example of a combination reaction is the formation of sodium hypochlorite (NaClO) from sodium (Na) and hypochlorous acid (HClO):

${\mathrm{Na}}_{}+{\mathrm{HClO}}_{}\to {\mathrm{NaClO}}_{}$

In this reaction, sodium and hypochlorous acid combine to form sodium hypochlorite.

What happens in a decomposition reaction?

In a decomposition reaction, a single reactant breaks down into two or more products. This is essentially the opposite of a combination reaction. For example, water (H₂O) can be decomposed into hydrogen gas (H₂) and oxygen gas (O₂) through electrolysis:

${H2O}_{}\to {H2}_{}+{O2}_{}$

In this reaction, water is broken down into hydrogen and oxygen gases.

What is a combustion reaction and what are its typical products?

A combustion reaction typically involves a hydrocarbon reacting with oxygen to produce water (H₂O) and carbon dioxide (CO₂). These reactions are exothermic, releasing energy in the form of heat and light. For example, the combustion of methane (CH₄) can be represented as:

${\mathrm{CH}4}_{}+{O2}_{}\to {\mathrm{CO}2}_{}+{H2O}_{}$

In this reaction, methane reacts with oxygen to produce carbon dioxide and water.

What is the difference between single displacement and double displacement reactions?

In a single displacement reaction, one element replaces another element in a compound. For example, zinc (Zn) can displace copper (Cu) in copper sulfate (CuSO₄):

${\mathrm{Zn}}_{}+{\mathrm{CuSO}4}_{}\to {\mathrm{ZnSO}4}_{}+{\mathrm{Cu}}_{}$

In a double displacement reaction, ions from two compounds exchange places. For example, barium nitrate (Ba(NO₃)₂) reacts with sodium sulfate (Na₂SO₄):

${\mathrm{Ba(NO}3)2}_{}+{\mathrm{Na}2\mathrm{SO}4}_{}\to {\mathrm{BaSO}4}_{}+{\mathrm{NaNO}3}_{}$

Here, barium and sodium ions swap places to form barium sulfate and sodium nitrate.