What is the prefix, if oxygen is less than the oxygen present in a compound?
Answers
O
That's the suffix. When you are working with non-metals like oxygen (O) and chlorine (Cl), the prefix (section at the beginning of the word) of the second element changes based on how many atoms there are in the compound.
Explanation:
There are many substances that exist as two or more atoms connected together so strongly that they behave as a single particle. These multiatom combinations are called molecules. A molecule is the smallest part of a substance that has the physical and chemical properties of that substance. In some respects, a molecule is similar to an atom. A molecule, however, is composed of more than one atom.
Some elements exist naturally as molecules. For example, hydrogen and oxygen exist as two-atom molecules. Other elements also exist naturally as diatomic molecules (see Table 3.3 “Elements That Exist as Diatomic Molecules”). As with any molecule, these elements are labelled with a molecular formula, a formal listing of what and how many atoms are in a molecule. (Sometimes only the word formula is used, and its meaning is inferred from the context.) For example, the molecular formula for elemental hydrogen is H2, with H being the symbol for hydrogen and the subscript 2 implying that there are two atoms of this element in the molecule. Other diatomic elements have similar formulas: O2, N2, and so forth. Other elements exist as molecules—for example, sulfur normally exists as an eight-atom molecule, S8, while phosphorus exists as a four-atom molecule, P4 (see Figure 3.3 “Molecular Art of S”). Otherwise, we will assume that elements exist as individual atoms, rather than molecules. It is assumed that there is only one atom in a formula if there is no numerical subscript on the right side of an element’s symbol.
Table 3.3 Elements That Exist as Diatomic Molecules