Complete Ionic Equation
An equation showing every soluble strong electrolyte as its separate constituent ions.
Unit
Dimensionless
In depth
Only strong acids, strong bases and soluble salts are split; weak electrolytes, gases, pure liquids and insoluble solids are kept as whole formulae because they are not appreciably dissociated. The complete ionic equation gives the truest picture of the species present in the beaker.
Examples in the real world
Ag⁺ + NO₃⁻ + Na⁺ + Cl⁻ → AgCl(s) + Na⁺ + NO₃⁻ for silver chloride precipitation.