Unit 1 - Formation and Simple Decomposition

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Decomposition

A decomposition reaction is a reaction in which a compound breaks down into two or more simpler substances. The general form of a decomposition reaction is: Most decomposition reactions require an input of energy in the form of heat, light, or electricity.

Binary compounds are compounds composed of just two elements. The simplest kind of decomposition reaction is when a binary compound decomposes into its elements.

Formation

Formation reactions are chemical reactions that form one mole of a substance from its constituent elements in their standard states. The term standard states means as a diatomic molecule, if that is how the element exists, and in the proper phase at normal temperatures (typically room temperature). The product is one mole of substance, which may require that coefficients on the reactant side be fractional (a change from our normal insistence that all coefficients be whole numbers). For example, the formation reaction for methane