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Class!
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How do you get the percentage

composition of the compounds based on
their chemical formula?
Based on their chemical analysis?
 Calculating a Theoretical
Percentage Composition from a
Chemical Formula

n x molar mass of element

percent composition by mass = -------------------------------------- x 100
molar mass of compound

where: n = the number of moles of the element in 1 mole

of the compound
 Calculating Percentage
Composition of a Compound
from Chemical Analysis

Mass of element
Percentage by mass of element = ------------------------------- x 100
Mass of compound
Learning Objectives:

At the end of the session, the

learners are expected to:
1. Calculate the empirical formula from the
percent composition of a compound
2. Calculate the molecular formula given molar
mass
Finding the Empirical and
Molecular Formula of a
Compound
When chemists synthesize or discover a new
compound, the compound is analyzed quantitatively
to determine its percentage composition.

From the compound’s percent composition, the

empirical formula is then determined.
Empirical Formula – consists of the symbols of all
elements present in the compound, with the
subscripts showing the smallest whole-number ratio
of the atoms in the compound.

Molecular Formula - gives the actual number of

each kind of atom present in a molecule of the
compound.
Empirical Formula from
Percent Composition
Example:
A compound is found to consist of 7.81% C
and 92.19% Cl. What is the empirical
formula of the compound?
Assume 100.00 g of the compound. The sample will
therefore contain 7.81 g C and 92.19 g Cl. The grams are
converted to moles to get the ratios of the moles of the
elements in the compound:

1 mole C
7.81 g C x ---------------- = 0.650 mole C
12.01 g C

1 mole Cl
92.19 g Cl x ---------------- = 2.601 moles Cl
35.45 g Cl
The compound is C0.650Cl2.601. But chemical formulas are
expressed in whole numbers. Empirical formulas are
expressed as the lowest whole number ratio between
the atoms.
To convert to whole numbers, divide the number of
moles by the smallest value (that is 0.650).

0.650 2.601
C : ---------- = 1 Cl : ---------- = 4
0.650 0.650

The empirical formula is CCl4

Practice Problems:
1. Methyl acetate is a solvent commonly used in
some paints, ink and adhesives. What is the
empirical formula for methyl acetate, which has a
percent composition of 48.64% C, 8.16% H and
43.20% O?

2. A blue solid is found to contain 36.84% nitrogen

and 63.26% oxygen. Find the empirical formula
for this solid?
Finding Molecular Formula of
a Compound given the molar
mass
Example:
A compound is found to consist of 43.64%
P and 56.36% O. The molar mass for the
compound is 283.88 g/mol. What is the
empirical and molecular formula of the
compound?
Assume 100.00 g of the compound. What is the mass of each
element in 100.00 g of compound?

P = 43.64 g and O = 56.36 g

What are the moles of each element in 100.0 g of compound?

1 mole P
43.64 g P x --------------- = 1.409 mols P
30.97 g P

1 mole O
56.36 g O x --------------- = 3.523 mols O
16.00 g O
Divide the mole values by the smallest value to get

1.409 3.523
P: ---------- = 1 O: ---------- = 2.5
1.409 1.409

The compound is PO2.5. But the subscripts are still not whole numbers. Multiply the
subscripts by a factor to get the smallest whole number. When multiplied by 2, the
empirical formula is P2O5.

What is the molecular formula?

Compare the mass of the empirical formula to the molar mass:

Mass of P2O5 = 141.94 g/mol

Molar mass = 283.88 g/mol

Molar mass 283.88 g/mol

- ----------------------------------- = --------------------------- = 2
- mass of empirical formula 141.94 g/mol

Therefore, the molecular formula is (P2O5)2 or P4O10.

Practice Example
Ascorbic acid (Vitamin C) contains
40.92% C, 4.58% H and 54.50% O by
mass. Its molar mass is 176 g/mol. What
is the molecular formula of ascorbic acid?
Evaluation (1/4 SOP)
An oxide of nitrogen contains 63.1% oxygen
and has a molar mass of 76.0 g/mol. What
is the empirical and molecular formula of
this compound?
Assignment
A sample of a compound of Cl and O
reacts with excess of H2 to give 0.233 g
of HCl and 0.403 g of H2O. Determine
the empirical formula of the compound.
Name the compound.
Thank You!