The equation Fe + 3HNO3 -> Fe(NO3)3 + 3NO2 + 3H2O

  1. Detailed information about the equation Fe + 3HNO3 -> Fe(NO3)3 + 3NO2 + 3H2O

    • This equation describes the reaction process between iron (Fe) and nitric acid (HNO3) to produce iron (III) nitrate (Fe(NO3)3), nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and water (H2O).
    • According to the coefficients of the equation, we can see that each mole of iron will react with 3 moles of nitric acid to produce 1 mole of iron (III) nitrate, 3 moles of nitrogen dioxide and 3 moles of water.

  2. Reaction conditions

    • The reaction occurs under room temperature conditions.
    • Iron needs to be stainless or highly pure iron to ensure the reaction is effective.

  3. Reaction process

    • Iron reacts with nitric acid to produce iron (III) nitrate, nitrogen dioxide and water.
    • This is an oxidation-reduction reaction. Iron is oxidized from an oxidation state of 0 to an oxidation state of +3, while nitrogen in HNO3 is reduced from an oxidation state of +5 to an oxidation state of +4.

  4. Occurring phenomena

    • When iron reacts with nitric acid, a fairly noticeable phenomenon is the release of brown gas – that is nitrogen dioxide (NO2).
    • The initial colorless or pale yellow solution will turn brown due to the formation of Fe(NO3)3 and NO2.
    • There might be heat emission during the reaction process.

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