Question

A sample of sodium chloride contains 58.5g of sodium and 91.5g of chlorine. In a second sample of sodium chloride, you determine that there is 34.6 g of chlorine. What is the mass of sodium in the second sample?

A. 21.9 g

B. 23.9 g

C. 24.6 g

D. 25.9 g

Answer 1

The mass of sodium in the second sample can be calculated using the molar mass of NaCl and the given mass of chlorine.

Step-by-step explanation:

The formula mass of sodium chloride (NaCl) is calculated by adding the atomic masses of one sodium atom and one chlorine atom: Na: 23.0 amu + Cl: 35.4 amu = 58.4 amu.

In the first sample, there is 58.5 g of sodium and 91.5 g of chlorine. We can use the formula mass to find the amount of NaCl: 58.5 g Na / 23.0 g/mol + 91.5 g Cl / 35.4 g/mol = X mol NaCl. From this, we can calculate the molar mass of NaCl in the first sample.

In the second sample, there is 34.6 g of chlorine. Using the molar mass of NaCl calculated in the first sample, we can calculate the mass of sodium in the second sample by rearranging the equation: 34.6 g Cl / (molar mass of NaCl) = X mol Na, and then multiplying by the molar mass of Na to get the mass of sodium in the second sample.