Decomposition Reactions

Decomposition reactions are those in which a compound breaks down into simpler compounds or elements.

Recognizing Decomposition Reactions

Decomposition reactions are very easy to spot. They have one reactant. No other reactions have only one reactant.

Of course, that doesn't mean the the coefficient has to be one, only that there is only one reactant. Both of these are decomposition reactions:

Completing decomposition reactions

Decomposition reactions fall into two general types, simple decomposition reactions and special cases. Simple decomposition reactions are those that start with a simple ionic compound (containing only two elements). Special cases are several classes of compounds whose products can be predicted easily if you know that patterns.