Does order matter?

[Wilson Yeh 1L]

Say my answer is Cl2 + H2O --> Cl- + HClO + H+, could I also write it as H20 + Cl2 --> HClO + Cl- + H+?

Is there a standard way to order this? Or does it not matter? Thanks!

[Sammy Thatipelli 1B]

I do not think order matters as long as your reactants and products are on their respective sides.

[Veritas Kim 2L]

No, I think as long as you have a balance equation with all the H+, e-, and H20 on the right side (reactant or product) with the arrow pointing in the right direction (reduction/oxidation) you will be fine.

[Chris Lamb 1G]

We haven't learned any convention for that specific order, but I would imagine that a rule likely exists for making very long reactions more organized. We don't have to worry about it for this class, though.

[Erik Khong 2E]

I am sure it doesn't really matter for this class, but I personally like to keep them in the order of importance. I tend to have them in the order of the species being reduced, the species being oxidized, then H2O and/or H+.

[Jennifer Ho 1K]

There's no correct way of ordering the species, as long as the right species are on the right side, it doesn't matter.

[Jaewoo Jo 2L]

The order does not matter if the order is switched but can't switch over between reactants and products.

[Elizabeth Bamishaye 2I]

I am sure it doesn't really matter for this class, but I personally like to keep them in the order of importance. I tend to have them in the order of the species being reduced, the species being oxidized, then H2O and/or H+.

Yeah, I like to do this as well.