Question

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A 10.24 gram sample of copper is heated in the presence of excess chlorine. A metal chloride is formed with a mass of 15.96 g.
Determine the empirical formula of the metal chloride.

Enter the elements in the order Cu, Cl

Answer 1

To determine the empirical formula of the metal chloride, we need to find the ratio of copper (Cu) to chlorine (Cl) in the compound.

Given:

Mass of copper (Cu) = 10.24 g

Mass of metal chloride = 15.96 g

First, we need to calculate the number of moles for each element using their respective molar masses.

Molar mass of copper (Cu) = 63.55 g/mol

Molar mass of chlorine (Cl) = 35.45 g/mol

Number of moles of copper (Cu) = Mass / Molar mass = 10.24 g / 63.55 g/mol

Number of moles of copper (Cu) = 0.161 moles

Number of moles of chlorine (Cl) = Mass / Molar mass = 15.96 g / 35.45 g/mol

Number of moles of chlorine (Cl) = 0.45 moles

Next, we need to find the simplest whole-number ratio between copper and chlorine.

Divide the number of moles of each element by the smallest number of moles (0.161 moles in this case):

Copper (Cu): 0.161 moles / 0.161 moles = 1

Chlorine (Cl): 0.45 moles / 0.161 moles ≈ 2.79

Round the ratio to the nearest whole number:

Copper (Cu): 1

Chlorine (Cl): 3

The empirical formula of the metal chloride is CuCl₃, which represents the simplest ratio of copper to chlorine in the compound.

Answer 2

To determine the empirical formula of the metal chloride, we need to find the ratio of copper to chlorine atoms in the compound.

First, we need to calculate the number of moles of each element in the compound.

Moles of Cu = 10.24 g / 63.55 g/mol = 0.161 moles

Moles of Cl = 15.96 g / 35.45 g/mol = 0.450 moles

Next, we need to divide the number of moles of each element by the smaller number of moles to get the mole ratio.

Mole ratio of Cu = 0.161 moles / 0.161 moles = 1

Mole ratio of Cl = 0.450 moles / 0.161 moles = 2.79 ≈ 3

The empirical formula of the metal chloride is CuCl3.