Question

Tin forms compounds in the \(+2\) and \(+4\) oxidation states. Therefore, when tin reacts with fluorine, two products are possible. Write balanced equations for the production of the two tin halide compounds and name them.

Short answer

The balanced equations for the production of two tin halide compounds are: \(Sn + \frac{1}{2}F_2 \rightarrow SnF_2\) - Tin(II) fluoride \(Sn + 2F_2 \rightarrow SnF_4\) - Tin(IV) fluoride

Step-by-step solution

Identify the possible compounds

Since tin has two possible oxidation states, +2 and +4, it can form two different compounds with fluorine, which has an oxidation state of -1. These compounds are Tin(II) fluoride and Tin(IV) fluoride.

Write the unbalanced equation and balance for Tin(II) fluoride

To write the equation, combine the elements for tin (Sn) and fluorine (F): \[Sn + F_2 \rightarrow SnF_2\] Now, we need to balance the equation by ensuring an equal number of each element on both sides. Currently, there are 2 fluorine atoms on the left side of the equation and only 1 on the right side. To balance this, we can add a coefficient of 2 to the fluoride ion on the product side: \[ Sn + \frac{1}{2}F_2 \rightarrow SnF_2\]

Write the unbalanced equation and balance for Tin(IV) fluoride

Repeat the process for tin(IV) fluoride (SnF4): \[Sn + F_2 \rightarrow SnF_4\] To balance the equation, we can see that there is only 1 tin atom on both sides, but Fluorine needs 4 atoms on the product side to match Tin(IV)'s oxidation state, so we add a coefficient of 2 on both sides of the equation: \[ Sn + 2F_2 \rightarrow SnF_4\]

Write the names of both compounds

Both compounds are correctly named as Tin(II) fluoride for SnF2 and Tin(IV) fluoride for SnF4. So, the balanced equations for the production of two tin halide compounds are: \(Sn + \frac{1}{2}F_2 \rightarrow SnF_2\) - Tin(II) fluoride \(Sn + 2F_2 \rightarrow SnF_4\) - Tin(IV) fluoride