Question

The empirical formula for a compound that contains 6.34 grams carbon and 1.06 grams hydrogen is

Answer 1

`CH_2`

Step-by-step explanation:

Here, we want to get an empirical formula

We start by dividing each of the masses by the corresponding atomic masses

The atomic mass of carbon is 12 amu

The atomic mass of hydrogen is 1 amu

We start the division as follows:

`\begin{gathered} C\text{ = }(6.34)/(12)\text{ = 0.5283333} \\ \\ H\text{ = }(1.06)/(1)\text{ = 1.06} \end{gathered}`

Now, we divide the results by the smaller of the two:

`\begin{gathered} C\text{ = }(0.528333)/(0.529333)\text{ = 1} \\ \\ H\text{ = }(1.06)/(0.528333)\text{ = 2} \end{gathered}`

Thus, we have the empirical formula as:

`CH_2`