A certain compound contains 8.74% Carbon, 13.8% Fluorine, 77.4% Chlorine by weight. A possible molecular formula for this compound might be?
I think the answer is CF2Cl26
multipy mass of each element by the percent:
c: 12.01*.0874=1.049674
F: 19*.138=2.622
Cl: 35.45*.774=27.4383
Then divide each by 1.05 because you divide by the smallest number and get C-1 F-2.049 Cl-26.1317
NOPE.
You divide, not multiply.
mols C = 8.74/12.01 = ?
mols F = 13.8/19 = ?
mols Cl = 77.4/35,45 = ?
Then find the ratio as you did. I get CFCl2.
So:
C=.7277
F=.7263
Cl=2.183
then
C=1
F=0.99
Cl=2.9998
so wouldn't Cl round up to 3?
CFCl3
Yes it does. Rounding to the nearest whole number you have C1, F1, Cl3 and I made a typo. So the empirical formula is CFCl3. I'm glad you caught that.
Thank you!
To determine the molecular formula for the compound, you're on the right track by multiplying the mass of each element by their respective percentages. However, there seems to be an error in the division step.
Let's calculate it step by step correctly:
Given percentages: Carbon (C) = 8.74%, Fluorine (F) = 13.8%, Chlorine (Cl) = 77.4%.
1. Calculate the mass of each element:
Mass of Carbon = 12.01 * 0.0874 = 1.049674 g
Mass of Fluorine = 19 * 0.138 = 2.622 g
Mass of Chlorine = 35.45 * 0.774 = 27.4383 g
2. Divide each mass by the smallest mass value (in this case, 1.049674 g) to obtain the relative ratios:
Relative ratio of Carbon = 1.049674 g / 1.049674 g = 1
Relative ratio of Fluorine = 2.622 g / 1.049674 g ≈ 2.5
Relative ratio of Chlorine = 27.4383 g / 1.049674 g ≈ 26.1
Therefore, the resulting possible molecular formula for this compound might be CF2.5Cl26.1.