Thank you for your reply. The Zn in grams 1.80= .028 moles Zn and Cl in grams 0.90= .025 moles Cl
The question was: What is the EXPERIMENTAL empirical formula of zinc chloride?
Determine the simplest whole number ratio of moles of zinc used,
to moles of chlorine reacted in the zinc chloride that was produced. (Take your answers to #3 and #4, and divide both values by whatever value is smaller.)
Following this I get a 1:1 ratio or ZnCl
The next question is Determine the actual empirical formula of zinc chloride, based on the ionic charges of zinc and chloride ions, using your rules for
ionic nomenclature.
Because Zn has +2 ions and Cl has -1 the actual empirical formula is ZnCl2
Then...Does your experimental empirical formula (answer to #5) agree
with the known empirical formula (answer to #6) of zinc chloride? List and describe some sources of error that may have affected
your results
The only factor of error I can think of is that the ions weren't considered in the original formula. Is that correct?
All of your work is correct on the data you show. And, of course, ZnCl2, is the correct answer. I don't know how the experiment was conducted; therefore, I can't suggest where the error may have occurred. Have you checked how you came up with 1.8 g Zn and 0.9 g chlorine? That's the starting point and you need to make sure those are correct. I keep thinking that there must be a simple error (such as the mass Zn or mass chlorine) because it is not usual to come up with such a close 1:1 ratio when the actual ratio is 1:2.
To determine the empirical formula of zinc chloride, you have already calculated the moles of zinc (Zn) and moles of chlorine (Cl) produced.
Moles of zinc (Zn):
Given the mass of Zn as 1.80 grams, you calculated it as 0.028 moles Zn.
Moles of chlorine (Cl):
Given the mass of Cl as 0.90 grams, you calculated it as 0.025 moles Cl.
To determine the empirical formula, you need to find the simplest whole number ratio between the moles of Zn and Cl.
In this case, the ratio is 0.028 moles Zn : 0.025 moles Cl.
To simplify the ratio, you divide both values by the smaller value, which is 0.025:
0.028 moles Zn ÷ 0.025 = 1.12
0.025 moles Cl ÷ 0.025 = 1.00
Rounding these values to the nearest whole number, you get a ratio of approximately 1:1.
Therefore, the experimental empirical formula of zinc chloride is ZnCl.