When two substances are mixed together, an observer could determine if this

reaction is just a mixture or an actual chemical reaction by a visual observation. A

chemical reaction always produces a chemical change because atoms of the
reacting substances form combinations with new properties. There is usually visual
evidence of a chemical reaction such as the following; Formation of a gas (bubbles),
a change in color, formation of a solid (precipitate), and heat (or flame) produced or
heat absorbed. An example of two reactants that would form a chemical reaction
would be an antacid tablet (NaHCO3) dropped into a glass of water (H2O), produces
bubbles of carbon dioxide (CO2). However, in a mixture, two or more substances are
physically mixed together; the chemical and physical properties do not change.
Elements and compounds can often be put in the same place but retain their own
properties and identities. For instance, you can put salt in water and the salt will
dissolve. However, the salt is still there and the water is still there and you havent
created anything new. Another example would be when pouring chocolate syrup
into a glass of milk. The chocolate in the chocolate milk is the solute and the milk is
the solvent, mixing the two substances together. The mixture appears to be a single
substance that is distributed equally among each other.
The concept of limiting reactant can be defined as the reactant that limits or
restricts the amount of the product that can be formed in a chemical reaction. You
only have so much of a substance; that will be used up completely in the reaction.
And will stop the reaction from continuing further once you run out of the
substance. An example of limiting reactant in everyday life is like going to the
grocery store to buy hamburger patties for dinner, you would also need to buy buns.
The problem with this is that the hamburger patties come in packages of ten, but
the buns come in packages of eight. This in itself is an example of a limiting
reaction problem. In this case the buns are the limiting reagent because we can only
make eight burgers because we only have that many buns.