What is the mass of a proton? Is it 1g, 1amu, or something else?
On a relative scale we often say the mass of a proton is 1, a neutron is 1 and an electron is 0 BUT that's a relative scale so we don't need to keep repeating those 10^- numbers for the exponents.
The rest mass of a proton is 1.672E-27 kg. It is 1.007 amu. It is not 1g.
Okay, thank you! That is what I thought.
Just another quick question-- I thought H+ was the same as a proton, but H has a mass of 1g, so why doesn't a proton have a mass of 1g? That is what made me confused about this question in the first place. Can you please explain it?
The mass of a proton is not exactly 1 gram (g) or 1 atomic mass unit (amu), but it is approximately 1 atomic mass unit. To be more precise, the mass of a proton is approximately 1.67 x 10^-27 kilograms (kg) or about 1.007276 amu.
To find this information, you can refer to reliable scientific sources such as textbooks, scientific journals, or reputable websites that provide accurate data. One such source is the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC), which publishes the "Atomic Weights of the Elements" booklet.
Alternatively, you can also use reference books like the CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics or consult online databases such as the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) to obtain precise values for the mass of a proton. These sources are regularly updated to reflect the latest scientific measurements.