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Solving chemical equations with linear algebra



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Thu Aug 30, 2007 4:40 am
Snoink says...



...does anyone know how to do this?
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Thu Aug 30, 2007 4:57 am
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gyrfalcon says...



I don't claim to be good at math, but I sometimes enjoy algebra. Perhaps if you could give us a specific example?
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Thu Aug 30, 2007 5:08 am
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Incandescence says...



Snoinkums---


I'm going to assume you're working with a system of chemical reactions, instead of just one. But basically you do the same thing you do when you're given:

3x+4y=7z
4x+2y=8z

except now x,y,z are your chemical species, and the numbers are the unknowns. You probably end up doing some kind of row-echelon reduction, LU / QR decomposition, etc.


Best,
Brad
  





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Thu Aug 30, 2007 5:09 am
Snoink says...



Um... here's a somewhat simplified explanation that you might be able to understand.

http://www.macatea.com/wshop/dialogs/di ... lances.pdf

Basically, it's using a matrix to determine the unknown coefficients of the chemicals.

My problem is basically figuring out what is on the "c" part, if that makes sense.
Ubi caritas est vera, Deus ibi est.

"The mark of your ignorance is the depth of your belief in injustice and tragedy. What the caterpillar calls the end of the world, the Master calls the butterfly." ~ Richard Bach

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Thu Aug 30, 2007 5:23 am
Incandescence says...



Snoink--


The "C" part is the number of molecular compounds. That whole discourse on C-E just tells you whether the problem is underdetermined, overdetermined, or just right.

Otherwise, I'm not sure what other "c" part there is...? Could you be more specific, please?


Thanks!
Brad
  








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