What is the balanced molecular equation and net ionic equation for the reaction between hydrochloric acid and ammonium hydroxide?

The balanced molecular equation for the reaction between hydrochloric acid (HCl) and ammonium hydroxide (NH₄OH) is as follows:

HCl(aq) + NH4OH(aq) → NH4Cl(aq) + H2O(l)

In this reaction, hydrochloric acid reacts with ammonium hydroxide to produce ammonium chloride and water. Now, let’s break it down into the net ionic equation.

The complete ionic equation breaks down all soluble ionic compounds into their constituent ions:

H+(aq) + Cl-(aq) + NH4+(aq) + OH-(aq) → NH4Cl(aq) + H2O(l)

To find the net ionic equation, we eliminate the spectator ions, which in this case is the chloride ion (Cl^–), as it does not participate in the reaction:

H+(aq) + OH-(aq) → H2O(l)

This net ionic equation shows that the reaction between the hydrogen ions from hydrochloric acid and the hydroxide ions from ammonium hydroxide results in the formation of water. The ammonium ions do not change; they are part of the ammonium chloride formation but do not affect the ionic balance of the equation.