The chemical and engineering properties of cement are very important in the construction industries. One of the four principle chemical compounds in Portland cement in tricalcium silicate, 3CaO.SiO2. Calculate its molecular/formula weight?
What don't you understand about this? Just add 3 x atomic mass Ca + 3 x atomic mass O + atomic mass Si + 2 x atomic mass O
To calculate the molecular/formula weight of tricalcium silicate (3CaO.SiO2), we need to determine the atomic weights of the elements present in the compound.
The atomic weights of the elements can be found on the periodic table.
The atomic weight of calcium (Ca) is 40.08 grams per mole (g/mol).
The atomic weight of oxygen (O) is 16.00 g/mol.
The atomic weight of silicon (Si) is 28.09 g/mol.
Now, let's calculate the molecular/formula weight of tricalcium silicate:
Tricalcium silicate (3CaO.SiO2) consists of three calcium atoms (3CaO) and one silicon-oxygen unit (SiO2).
Calculation:
3 (CaO) + 1 (SiO2)
= (3 x Ca) + (1 x Si) + (2 x O)
Substituting the atomic weights:
= (3 x 40.08 g/mol) + (28.09 g/mol) + (2 x 16.00 g/mol)
= 120.24 g/mol + 28.09 g/mol + 32.00 g/mol
= 180.33 g/mol
Therefore, the molecular/formula weight of tricalcium silicate (3CaO.SiO2) is approximately 180.33 grams per mole (g/mol).