A compound contains 88.79% oxygen (O) and 11.19% hydrogen (H). Compute the empirical formula of the compound
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Chemistry Formulas
Empirical Formula
In chemistry, we represent every compound by some formula. The simplest formula for this representation is the empirical formula. It provides the lowest whole number ratio of the atoms existing in the compound. The relative number of atoms of every element in the compound is available by this formula. This article will explain the concept of empirical formula with examples. Let us learn it!
Empirical Formula
Concept of Empirical Formula
The empirical formula of any compound is the simplest whole-number ratio of each individual type of atom in that compound. It may be the same as the compound’s molecular formula sometimes. But it is not possible always. We may calculate the empirical formula from information about the mass of each element in that compound or also from the percentage composition.
Steps for Determining an Empirical Formula:
To calculate the empirical formula, we have to first determine the relative masses of the various elements present. We may either use mass data in grams or percent composition. Also, for the percentage composition, we may assume the total percent of a compound like 100% and the percentage composition in grams.
The steps to determine the empirical formula are as follows:
Step 1: Find out the mass of each element present in grams
m = Element percentage = mass in gram
Step 2: Obtain the number of moles of each type of atom present
M =
m
a
t
o
m
i
c
m
a
s
s
= Molar amount
Step 3: Now, divide the number of moles of each element by the smallest number of moles
R =
M
l
e
a
s
t
M
v
a
l
u
e
= Atomic Ratio
Step 4: Finally, convert numbers to the whole numbers. This set of whole numbers will be the subscripts in the empirical formula.
i.e. R
×
w
h
o
l
e
n
u
m
b
e
r
= Empirical Formula