Answer:
CHCl₃
Step-by-step explanation:
We have the following data:
C = 5.03 g
H = 0.42 g
Cl= 44.5 g
First, we divide each mass by the molar mass (MM) of the chemical element to calculate the moles:
MM(C) = 12 g/mol
moles of C = mass/MM(C) = 5.03 g/(12 g/mol) = 0.42 mol C
MM(H) = 1 g/mol
moles of H = mass/MM(H) = 0.42 g/(1 g/mol) = 0.42 mol H
MM(Cl) = 35.4 g/mol
moles of Cl = mass/MM(Cl) = 44.5 g/(35.4 g/mol) = 1.26 mol Cl
Now, we divide the moles by the smallest number of moles (0.42):
0.42 mol C/0.42 = 1 C
0.42 mol H/0.42 = 1 H
1.26 mol Cl/0.42 = 3 Cl
Thus, the C:H:Cl ratio is 1:1:3.
Therefore, the empirical formula is CHCl₃