This problem is providing the mass of hydrogen and that of oxygen, 8 grams and 32 grams respectively, so the mass of water is required in agreement with the law of conservation of mass. At the end, the result turns out to be 40 grams according to the following.
In science, the law of conservation of mass states that matter cannot be neither created nor destroyed, not even in a chemical change or chemical reaction. In such a way, as hydrogen and oxygen combine, we can write:
[tex]2H_2+O_2\rightarrow 2H_2O[/tex]
Which is abided by this law in terms of the number of atoms, 4 H and 2 O, and also in grams, because if 8 grams of the former react with 32 g of the latter, the produced water will be 40 grams, according to this law.
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