Chemical Quantities: 10.3 Percent Composition and Chemical Formulas

10.
3 Percent Composition
and Chemical Formulas >
Chapter 10
Chemical Quantities
10.1 The Mole: A Measurement of

Matter
10.2 Mole-Mass and Mole-Volume
Relationships
10.3 Percent Composition and

Chemical Formulas
1 Copyright © Pearson Education, Inc., or its affiliates. All Rights Reserved.

.
10.3 Percent Composition
and Chemical Formulas > Empirical Formulas
Empirical Formulas
How can you calculate the empirical
formula of a compound?

.
The empirical formula of a compound gives

the lowest whole-number ratio of the atoms
or moles of the elements in a compound.
• An empirical formula may or may not be the
same as a molecular formula.

.
The empirical formula of a compound gives

the lowest whole-number ratio of the atoms
or moles of the elements in a compound.
• An empirical formula may or may not be the
same as a molecular formula.
– For example, the lowest ratio of hydrogen to oxygen
in hydrogen peroxide is 1:1. Thus, the empirical
formula of hydrogen peroxide is HO.
– The molecular formula, H2O2, has twice the number of
atoms as the empirical formula.
– Notice that the ratio of hydrogen to oxygen is still the
4
same, 1:1. Copyright © Pearson Education, Inc., or its affiliates. All Rights Reserved.
.
For carbon dioxide, the empirical and

molecular
formulas
are the
same—
CO2.

.
The figure below shows two compounds of

carbon and hydrogen having the same
empirical formula (CH) but different
molecular formulas.
Ethyne (C2H2), also called

acetylene, is a gas used in Styrene (C8H8) is used
welders’ torches. in making polystyrene.
.
The percent composition of a compound

can be used to calculate the empirical
formula of that compound.

.
The percent composition of a compound

can be used to calculate the empirical
formula of that compound.
• The percent composition tells the ratio of masses of
the elements in a compound.
• The ratio of masses can be changed to ratio of moles
by using conversion factors based on the molar mass
of each element.
• The mole ratio is then reduced to the lowest whole-
number ratio to obtain the empirical formula of the
compound.
.
Sample Problem 10.12
Determining the Empirical

Formula of a Compound
A compound is analyzed and

found to contain 25.9% nitrogen
and 74.1% oxygen. What is the
empirical formula of the
compound?

.
1 Analyze List the knowns and the unknown.

The percent composition gives the ratio of the
mass of nitrogen atoms to the mass of oxygen
atoms in the compound. Change the ratio of
masses to a ratio of moles and reduce this ratio
to the lowest whole-number ratio.
KNOWNS
percent by mass of N = 25.9% N
percent by mass of O = 74.1% O
UNKNOWN
empirical formula = N?O?
.
2 Calculate Solve for the unknown.

Convert the percent by mass of
each element to moles.
Percent means
1 mol N “parts per 100,” so
25.9 g N × = 1.85 mol N 100.0 g of the
14.0 g N
compound
1 mol contains 25.9 g N
74.1 g O × = 4.63 mol O and 74.1 g O.
O
16.0 g O
The mole ratio of N to O is N1.85O4.63.

.

Divide each molar quantity by the smaller
number of moles to get 1 mol for the
element with the smaller number of moles.
1.85 mol N = 1 mol N
1.85
4.63 mol O
= 2.50 mol O
1.85
The mole ratio of N to O is N1O2.5.

.

Multiply each part of the ratio by the
smallest whole number that will convert
both subscripts to whole numbers.
1 mol N × 2 = 2 mol N
2.5 mol O × 2 = 5 mol O
The empirical formula is N2O5.

.
3 Evaluate Does the result make sense?
The subscripts are whole numbers, and

the percent composition of this empirical
formula equals the percents given in the
original problem.

.
You are doing an experiment to try to find

the molecular formula of a compound. You
discover the percent composition. Can
you determine the molecular formula?

.
You are doing an experiment to try to find

the molecular formula of a compound. You
discover the percent composition. Can
you determine the molecular formula?
You can determine the empirical formula.

This might be the same as the molecular
formula, or it might not. You would need
more data to be sure of the molecular
formula.
.
and Chemical Formulas > Molecular Formulas
Molecular Formulas
How does the molecular formula of a

compound compare with the
empirical formula?

.
Interpret Data
Ethyne and benzene have the same

empirical formula—CH.
Comparison of Empirical and Molecular Formulas
Formula (name) Classification of Molar mass
formula (g/mol)
CH Empirical 13
C2H2 (ethyne) Molecular 26 (2 × 13)
C6H6 (benzene) Molecular 78 (6 × 13)
CH2O (methanol) Empirical and molecular 30
C2H4O2 (ethanoic acid) Molecular 60 (2 × 30)
C6H12O6 (glucose) Molecular 180 (6 × 30)

.
Interpret Data
Methanal, ethanoic acid, and glucose have

the same empirical formula—CH2O.
formula (g/mol)
CH Empirical 13
CH2O (methanal) Empirical and molecular 30

.
Interpret Data
Notice that the molar masses of the compounds in these

two groups are simple whole-number multiples of the
molar masses of the empirical formulas, CH and CH2O.
formula (g/mol)
CH Empirical 13
CH2O (methanal) Empirical and molecular 30

.
Methanal
(formaldehyde),
ethanoic acid (acetic
acid), and glucose have
the same empirical
formula—CH2O.

.
The molecular formula of a compound

is either the same as its experimentally
determined empirical formula, or it is a
simple whole-number multiple of its
empirical formula.

.
The molecular formula of a compound

is either the same as its experimentally
determined empirical formula, or it is a
simple whole-number multiple of its
empirical formula.
• Once you have determined the empirical
formula of a compound, you can determine
its molecular formula, if you know the
compound’s molar mass.

.
You can calculate the empirical formula

mass (efm) of a compound from its empirical
formula.
• This is simply the molar mass of the empirical
formula.

.
You can calculate the empirical formula

mass (efm) of a compound from its empirical
formula.
• Then you can divide the experimentally
determined molar mass by the empirical formula
mass.
• This quotient gives the number of empirical
formula units in a molecule of the compound and
is the multiplier to convert the empirical formula
to the molecular formula.
.
Finding the Molecular Formula of a

Compound
Calculate the molecular formula of a
compound whose molar mass is 60.0 g/mol
and empirical formula is CH4N.

.
1 Analyze List the knowns and the unknown.

• Divide the molar mass by the empirical
formula mass to obtain a whole number.
• Multiply the empirical formula subscripts by
this value to get the molecular formula.
KNOWNS
empirical formula = CH4N
molar mass = 60.0 g/mol
UNKNOWN
molecular formula = C?H?N?
.

First calculate the empirical formula
mass.
efm of CH4N = 12.0 g/mol + 4(1.0 g/mol) + 14.0 g/mol
= 30.0 g/mol

.
• Divide the molar mass by the

empirical formula mass.
molar mass 60.0 g/mol = 2
=
efm 30.0 g/mol
• Multiply the formula subscripts by this

value.
(CH4N) × 2 = C2H8N2

.
3 Evaluate Does the result make sense?
The molecular formula has the molar

mass of the compound.

.
What information, in addition to

empirical formula, is necessary to
determine the molecular formula of a
compound?

.
What information, in addition to

empirical formula, is necessary to
determine the molecular formula of a
compound?
Molecular formula can be determined if

the empirical formula and the molecular
mass of a compound are known.

.
and Chemical Formulas > Key Concepts
The percent by mass of an element in a

compound is the number of grams of
the element divided by the mass in
grams of the compound, multiplied by
100%.
The percent composition of a
compound can be used to calculate the
empirical formula of that compound.

.
10.3 Percent Composition Key Concepts and
and Chemical Formulas > Key Equations
The molecular formula of a compound is

either the same as its experimentally
determined formula, or it is a simple
whole-number multiple of its empirical
formula.
% by mass mass of element

of element = mass of compound × 100%
% by mass = mass of element in 1 mol compound × 100%

of element molar mass of compound
.
and Chemical Formulas > Glossary Terms
• percent composition: the percent by

mass of each element in a compound
• empirical formula: a formula with the
lowest whole-number ratio of
elements in a compound; the
empirical formula of hydrogen
peroxide (H2O2) is HO

.
BIG IDEA
The Mole and Quantifying Matter

• The molecular formula of a compound
can be determined by first finding the
percent composition of the compound
and determining the empirical formula.
• Using the empirical formula mass and
the molar mass of the compound, the
molecular formula can be determined.

.
END OF 10.3

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Chemical Quantities: 10.3 Percent Composition and Chemical Formulas

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10.

10.1 The Mole: A Measurement of

10.3 Percent Composition and

1 Copyright © Pearson Education, Inc., or its affiliates. All Rights Reserved.

2 Copyright © Pearson Education, Inc., or its affiliates. All Rights Reserved.

The empirical formula of a compound gives

3 Copyright © Pearson Education, Inc., or its affiliates. All Rights Reserved.

The empirical formula of a compound gives

For carbon dioxide, the empirical and

5 Copyright © Pearson Education, Inc., or its affiliates. All Rights Reserved.

The figure below shows two compounds of

Ethyne (C2H2), also called

The percent composition of a compound

7 Copyright © Pearson Education, Inc., or its affiliates. All Rights Reserved.

The percent composition of a compound

Determining the Empirical

A compound is analyzed and

9 Copyright © Pearson Education, Inc., or its affiliates. All Rights Reserved.

1 Analyze List the knowns and the unknown.

2 Calculate Solve for the unknown.

The mole ratio of N to O is N1.85O4.63.

11 Copyright © Pearson Education, Inc., or its affiliates. All Rights Reserved.

2 Calculate Solve for the unknown.

The mole ratio of N to O is N1O2.5.

12 Copyright © Pearson Education, Inc., or its affiliates. All Rights Reserved.

2 Calculate Solve for the unknown.

13 Copyright © Pearson Education, Inc., or its affiliates. All Rights Reserved.

3 Evaluate Does the result make sense?

The subscripts are whole numbers, and

14 Copyright © Pearson Education, Inc., or its affiliates. All Rights Reserved.

You are doing an experiment to try to find

15 Copyright © Pearson Education, Inc., or its affiliates. All Rights Reserved.

You are doing an experiment to try to find

You can determine the empirical formula.

How does the molecular formula of a

17 Copyright © Pearson Education, Inc., or its affiliates. All Rights Reserved.

Ethyne and benzene have the same

18 Copyright © Pearson Education, Inc., or its affiliates. All Rights Reserved.

Methanal, ethanoic acid, and glucose have

19 Copyright © Pearson Education, Inc., or its affiliates. All Rights Reserved.

Notice that the molar masses of the compounds in these

20 Copyright © Pearson Education, Inc., or its affiliates. All Rights Reserved.

21 Copyright © Pearson Education, Inc., or its affiliates. All Rights Reserved.

The molecular formula of a compound

22 Copyright © Pearson Education, Inc., or its affiliates. All Rights Reserved.

The molecular formula of a compound

23 Copyright © Pearson Education, Inc., or its affiliates. All Rights Reserved.

You can calculate the empirical formula

24 Copyright © Pearson Education, Inc., or its affiliates. All Rights Reserved.

You can calculate the empirical formula

Finding the Molecular Formula of a

26 Copyright © Pearson Education, Inc., or its affiliates. All Rights Reserved.

1 Analyze List the knowns and the unknown.

2 Calculate Solve for the unknown.

28 Copyright © Pearson Education, Inc., or its affiliates. All Rights Reserved.

2 Calculate Solve for the unknown.

• Divide the molar mass by the

• Multiply the formula subscripts by this

29 Copyright © Pearson Education, Inc., or its affiliates. All Rights Reserved.

3 Evaluate Does the result make sense?

The molecular formula has the molar

30 Copyright © Pearson Education, Inc., or its affiliates. All Rights Reserved.

What information, in addition to