Can the arrow point to the left when writing a chemical reaction?

reloader89

wrote...

11 years ago

Can the arrow point to the left when writing a chemical reaction?

I know normally chemical reactions are written as "Reactants ---> Products", but can it also be correct to write "Products Leftwards Arrow

- Reactants"? I'm not talking about reversible reactions, just a standard, one-directional reaction.

For example, when writing out that magnesium chloride and hydrogen are produced when magnesium reacts with hydrochloric acid. Would it be wrong for me to write:
MgCl2 + H2 Leftwards Arrow

- Mg + 2HCl

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FierceDixie

wrote...

11 years ago

Amounts to the same thing; it's just positional, although the method they teach...and which teachers have learned to expect...is the reactants -----> product format, although for reaction schemes and plant designs scribbled on the back of a cocktail napkin, it works just fine.

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askal

wrote...

11 years ago

To add one comment... in fact the reaction arrow really points both ways because, under the "right" conditions, reactions can go either way. Example. Al + O makes Al2O3 and the thermodynamics makes it want to go in that direction VERY strongly. However, with the appropriate conditions and a good deal of electricity, we can convert Al2O3 into Al and O. If we couldn't, we would not have anything made of aluminum. This particular example is from the field of extractive metallurgy. hope this helps

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