Question

What is the molecular formula of a compound that contains 10.0g carbon, 1.68g hydrogen, and 13.4g oxygen the molar mass of this compound is 180g/mol

Answer 1

CH2O

Step-by-step explanation:

Carbon Hydrogen Oxygen

mass(g) 10.0 1.68 13.4

no. of 10/12 = 0.83333 1.68/1 = 1.68 13.4/16=0.8375

moles

ratio 0.83333/0.83333=1 1.68/0.8333≈2 0.8375/0.83333≈1

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to find number of moles, divide mass by element's mass number

to find ratio, divide number of moles of each element by the element with the smallest number of moles (in this case, carbon)

ratio will give you empirical/molecular formula, CH2O