1. Identify the Reactants and Products:
* Reactants: NaOH(aq) and HCl(aq)
* Products: H₂O(l) and NaCl(aq)
2. Write the Balanced Molecular Equation:
NaOH(aq) + HCl(aq) → H₂O(l) + NaCl(aq)
3. Break Down Soluble Ionic Compounds into Ions:
* NaOH(aq) → Na⁺(aq) + OH⁻(aq)
* HCl(aq) → H⁺(aq) + Cl⁻(aq)
* NaCl(aq) → Na⁺(aq) + Cl⁻(aq)
4. Write the Complete Ionic Equation:
Na⁺(aq) + OH⁻(aq) + H⁺(aq) + Cl⁻(aq) → H₂O(l) + Na⁺(aq) + Cl⁻(aq)
5. Cancel out Spectator Ions:
Spectator ions are ions that appear on both sides of the equation and do not participate in the reaction. In this case, Na⁺ and Cl⁻ are spectator ions.
Final Complete Ionic Equation:
OH⁻(aq) + H⁺(aq) → H₂O(l)