Final answer:
The empirical formula is CH₂O, obtained by converting the masses of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen to their respective molar amounts and determining their simplest whole number ratio. The molecular formula is C₆H₁₂O₆ which is six times the empirical formula based on the molar mass of the compound.
Step-by-step explanation:
To determine the empirical formula of the compound, we first need to convert the gram amounts of each element to moles by using their respective atomic masses (C=12.01 g/mol, H=1.008 g/mol, O=16.00 g/mol):
- C: 48.38 grams ÷ 12.01 g/mol = 4.028 moles
- H: 6.74 grams ÷ 1.008 g/mol = 6.686 moles
- O: 53.5 grams ÷ 16.00 g/mol = 3.344 moles
Next, we determine the simplest whole number ratio of the moles of each element by dividing each by the smallest number of moles out of the three:
C: 4.028 moles ÷ 3.344 moles = 1.204 (approximately 1)
H: 6.686 moles ÷ 3.344 moles = 1.999 (approximately 2)
O: 3.344 moles ÷ 3.344 moles = 1
This gives us the empirical formula CH₂O. To find the molecular formula, we divide the molar mass of the compound by the molar mass of the empirical formula (CH₂O = 30.03 g/mol):
Molar mass of compound / Molar mass of empirical formula = 180.15 g/mol ÷ 30.03 g/mol = 6
The molecular formula is six times the empirical formula: (CH₂O)6 or C₆H₁₂O₆.