Conservation Of Mass

Question 1

What is the conservation of mass

Answer 1

No atoms are lost or made during a chemical reaction so the mass of products always equals the mass of reactants

Question 2

Even though no atoms are gained or lost in a chemical reaction, its not always possible to obtain the calculated amount of product because:

Answer 2

• the reaction may not go to completion because it’s reversible
• some of the product may be lost when it is separated from the reaction mixture
• some of the reactant may react in different ways than the expected reaction