Balance the equation; C₆H₁₂O₆ → C₇H₁₆ + C₃H₆ + C₂H₄

Here we need to balance the equation with moles because we don't know how many atoms are present. First, we need to work out the moles of each compound by dividing the mass by the Mr. By doing this, we'll see that an element double the number of moles more than others, making the ratio 1:1:1:2. We can now balance the equation, knowing that there's 1 C₆H₁₂O₆, 1 C₇H₁₆, 1 C₃H₆, but 2 C₂H₄. = C₆H₁₂O₆ → C₇H₁₆ + C₃H₆ + 2C₂H₄