Question

$P{b_3}{O_4}$ is regarded as a mixed oxide of $PbO$ and $Pb{O_2}$. How many parts of $Pb{O_2}$ are present in it?

Answer 1

Mixed oxide is made up of two or more oxides. While calculating the one oxide’s presence in the mixed oxide, one can simply break the mixed oxide into its constituent parts and make a balanced reaction which will give the parts present of each oxide.

Complete step by step answer:

1. First of all let's understand what oxides are, oxides are the chemical compound that consists of one other element and at least one oxygen atom.
2. In the question the mixed oxide $P{b_3}{O_4}$ is given which shows the oxides $PbO$ and $Pb{O_2}$ as its constituents. Hence, in order to find out the parts of a constituent in the mixed oxide, we need to write a balanced equation which will be as follows,
   $P{b_3}{O_4} \to 2PbO + 1Pb{O_2}$
3. Let's see how to write a balanced equation, while making a balanced equation we need to see if each element’s number of atoms present in the structure before the arrow is equal to each element’s number of atoms present in the structure after the arrow.
4. In the above-balanced equation the number of $Pb$ atoms in $P{b_3}{O_4}$ are $3$ and the number of $O$ atoms are $4$ which are present before the arrow. In both substituent $PbO$ and $Pb{O_2}$ the number of $Pb$ atoms and the number of $O$ atoms are $2$ and $3$ respectively. These numbers don’t match with the number of atoms the $P{b_3}{O_4}$ hence, to balance the equation we need to multiply $PbO$ by $2$ so as to get the desired number of atoms. Now both sides have an equal number of atoms which can be called a balanced equation.
5. Therefore, by analyzing the balanced equation we have found out that there is only one part of $Pb{O_2}$ the present in the mixed oxide $P{b_3}{O_4}$.

Note:
Oxides can be called a dianion of oxygen i.e. it contains an ${O^{2 - }}$ atom. The oxides present in the equation all are metal oxides and they contain an anion of oxygen. Due to the electronegativity of oxygen, it easily forms stable chemical bonds i.e. oxides with any element