An organic compound contains 60% carbon, 13.3% hydrogen and 26.7% oxygen. Calculate the empirical formula rn(C=12,H =1, O=16)

Answer Details

To calculate the empirical formula, we need to determine the simplest whole number ratio of atoms in the compound. Given that the compound contains 60% carbon, we can assume that the compound contains 60 grams of carbon in a 100-gram sample of the compound. Similarly, we can assume that the compound contains 13.3 grams of hydrogen and 26.7 grams of oxygen in a 100-gram sample. Next, we need to convert the masses of each element to the number of moles of each element using their respective atomic masses. The atomic masses are: - Carbon (C) = 12 - Hydrogen (H) = 1 - Oxygen (O) = 16 So, the number of moles of each element is: - Carbon (C) = 60g / 12 g/mol = 5 moles - Hydrogen (H) = 13.3g / 1 g/mol = 13.3 moles - Oxygen (O) = 26.7g / 16 g/mol = 1.67 moles The next step is to divide each of the mole values by the smallest mole value to obtain the simplest whole number ratio of atoms. In this case, the smallest mole value is 1.67 moles of oxygen. Dividing by 1.67 gives: - Carbon (C) = 5 / 1.67 = 2.99 ≈ 3 - Hydrogen (H) = 13.3 / 1.67 = 7.95 ≈ 8 - Oxygen (O) = 1.67 / 1.67 = 1 Therefore, the empirical formula of the compound is C3H8O. is the correct formula as it matches the empirical formula determined above.