Question

A compound consists of 3.47 grams of oxygen and 1.52 grams of nitrogen. What is the empirical formula of this compound?

a. NO
b. N2O2
c. N2O
d. NO2

Answer 1

First we need to determine the number of moles of each element.

number of moles O = 3.47/16 = 0.22
number of moles N = 1.52 / 14 = 0.11

Therefore the total number of moles is 0.33

mole percent;

% mol of O = 0.67
% mol of N = 0.33

dividing by the smallest mole percentage, the empirical formula is

NO2