How many oxygen atoms are in the compound below: Cu3(PO4)2
a
6
b
2
c
4
d
8
The correct answer is option b) 2.
In the compound Cu3(PO4)2, there are 4 oxygen atoms total.
There are 2 phosphate groups (PO4) in the compound, and each phosphate group contains 4 oxygen atoms. So, 2 x 4 = 8 oxygen atoms are present in the phosphate groups.
However, the compound has a subscript 2 after the closing parenthesis, indicating that there are two phosphate groups present. So, 8 x 2 = 16 oxygen atoms if we consider the individual oxygen atoms in both phosphate groups.
But, there is a subscript 3 after the copper (Cu) symbol, indicating that there are three copper atoms present. Since each copper atom is not connected to any oxygen atom, we should not count the oxygen atoms from the copper atoms.
Therefore, the correct answer is 16 (oxygen atoms in the phosphate groups) - 3 (oxygen atoms not connected to the copper atoms) = 13 oxygen atoms that are actually counted in the compound.
So, there are 13 oxygen atoms in the compound Cu3(PO4)2.