General Chemistry

Freshman Course: Second Semester

General Chemistry (Chem. 1012)
Chemistry Department, CNCS, AAU

By Girum A. (PhD
 2.2. Compounds
The small number of elements that make up our world combine to produce
matter in a seemingly limitless variety of forms.
We have only to look at
• the vegetation,
• flesh,
• landscapes,
• fabrics,
• building materials, and
• other things around us to appreciate the wonderful variety of the
material world. Parts of chemistry
Analysis: the discovery of which elements have combined together to form a
substance.
synthesis: the process of combining elements to produce compounds or
converting one compound into another.
 What is Compound?
A compound is a substance that is made from more than one
element.
A compound is an electrically neutral substance that consists of two or
more different elements with their atoms present in a definite ratio.
A binary & tertiary compound consists of only two and three elements,
respectively. atom atom

Eg:
Water,

A compound made up of A compound made up of

2 different elements 7 different elements
 There is a key difference between elements and compounds.
•Compounds can be broken down into simpler substances by chemical
means, but elements cannot.

Physical methods that are used to separate mixtures cannot be used to break a
compound into simpler substances.
 Boil liquid water and you get water vapor, not the oxygen and hydrogen
that water contains.
 Dissolve a sugar cube in water and you still have sucrose, not oxygen,
carbon, and hydrogen.
 This does not mean that sucrose or water cannot be broken down into
simpler substances.
 But methods must involve a chemical change.
• A chemical change is a change that produces matter with a
different composition than the original matter.
Heating is one of the processes used to break down compounds
into simpler substances.

• The layer of sugar is heated until it breaks down into solid carbon
and water vapor.
What happens to the compounds in bread when it is
overcooked that causes the change in the taste of the bread?
The compounds undergo a chemical change that
changes the taste of the bread. They are broken
down into solid carbon.
When an electrical current passes through
water, it is broken down into oxygen and
hydrogen.
 A compound can be broken down into
elements

An element

An element
A compound made up of 3
different elements

An element
Material Made up of: Element or
compound
Water Hydrogen and Oxygen

Coal Carbon

Carbon dioxide Carbon and Oxygen

Oxygen Oxygen

Chalk Calcium, Carbon &

Oxygen
Wax Carbon & Hydrogen

Table salt Sodium & Chlorine

Caffeine Carbon, Hydrogen,

Nitrogen & Oxygen
 Categories of Compounds

compounds

Organic Inorganic

Eg. methane and propane, sugars such as glucose and

sucrose, and most medicines

Intermetallic compounds
are inorganic compounds that are formed when the atoms of two metals bond in specific proportions. Examples are
nitinol, NiTi, which is used in orthodontic wires, flexible eyeglass frames, and stents that increase blood flow in
arteries; Ag3Sn, which is found in “silver” dental fillings; and FeCo, which is used in magnets.
The elements in a compound are not just mixed together.
Their atoms are actually joined, or bonded, to one another in a specific way
due to a chemical change.
The result is a substance with chemical and physical properties different from
those of the elements that form it.
For example, when sulfur is ignited in air, it combines with oxygen from the
air to form the compound sulfur dioxide. Solid yellow sulfur and odorless
oxygen gas produce a colorless, pungent, and poisonous gas (Fig. C.1).

FIGURE C.1 Elemental sulfur burns in

air with a blue flame and produces the
dense gas sulfur dioxide, a compound of
sulfur and oxygen.
 Chemists have found that atoms can bond together to form molecules or can be present in
compounds as ions:
 A molecule is a discrete group of atoms bonded together in a specific arrangement.
 An ion is a positively or negatively charged atom or molecule.
 A positively charged ion is called a cation, and a negatively charged ion is called an anion.
 For instance, a positively charged sodium atom is a cation and is denoted Na+; a negatively charged
chlorine atom is an anion and is denoted Cl-.
 An example of a “polyatomic” (many-atom) cation is the ammonium ion, NH4+, and an example of
apolyatom ic anion is the carbonate ion, CO3-2;
 note that the latter has two negative charges.
 An ionic compound consists of ions in a ratio that results in overall electrical neutrality;
 a molecular compound consists of electrically neutral molecules.
 Home take message!
• Compounds are combinations of elements in which the atoms of
the different elements are present in a characteristic, constant
ratio.

• A compound is classified as molecular if it consists of molecules

and as ionic if it consists of ions.
 2.2.2. Molecules and Molecular Compounds
• The chemical formula of a compound represents its composition in terms of
chemical symbols.
• Subscripts show the numbers of atoms of each element present in the smallest
unit that is representative of the compound.
• For molecular compounds, it is common to give the molecular formula, a
chemical formula that shows how many atoms of each type of element are
present in a single molecule of the compound.
• For instance, the molecular formula for water is H2O: each molecule contains
one O atom and two H atoms.
• The molecular formula for estrone, is C18H22O2, showing that a single molecule
of estrone consists of 18 C atoms, 22 H atoms, and 2 O atoms.
• A molecule of testosterone, differs by only a few atoms: its molecular formula is
C19H28O2.
• Except for the noble gases, all the elements that are gases at ordinary temperatures
are found as diatomic molecules, molecules that consist of two atoms.

• For example, molecules of hydrogen gas contain two hydrogen atoms bonded
together and are represented as H2.

• The most common form of oxygen consists of diatomic molecules and is known
formally as dioxygen, O2.

• Solid sulfur exists as S8 molecules and phosphorus as P4 molecules.

• Nitrogen and all the halogens exist as diatomic molecules: N2, F2, Cl2, Br2, and I2.
 structural formula
• indicates how the atoms are linked together, but not their actual three-
dimensional arrangement in space.

• Each line represents a chemical bond (the link between two atoms) and each symbol
an atom.
• Structural formulas contain more information than the chemical formula, but they are
cumbersome.
• structural formula indicates the groupings of the atoms and summarizes the full
structural formula.
• symbols with subscripts represent atoms connected to the preceding element in the
formula.
• A group of atoms attached to another atom in the molecule set off with parentheses.
• For example, methylpropane (2) has a methyl group (-CH3) attached to the central
atom in a chain of three carbon atoms, and the condensed version of its structural
formula is written CH3CH(CH3)CH3 or HC(CH3)3.
 Line Structure of molecular compound

A line structure represents a chain of carbon atoms by a zigzag line, where each
short line indicates a bond and the end of each line represents a carbon atom.

Atoms other than C and H are shown by their symbols.

Double bonds are represented by a double line and triple bonds by a triple line.
Because carbon almost always forms four bonds in organic compounds, there is
no need to show the C-H bonds explicitly.
Shape of Molecular Compound
• The pictorial representations of molecules that most accurately show their
shapes are images based on computation or software that represents
atoms by spheres of various sizes.
• An example is the space-filling model of an ethanol molecule shown in
below
Representations of an
ethanol molecule: (a) space-filling,

• The atoms are represented by colored spheres (they are not the actual
colors of the atoms) that fit into one another.
• The radii of the atoms are determined by calculation; because atoms do
not have hard surfaces, the surface shown uses a chosen cut-off limit of
 Ball-and stick model
• Each ball represents the location of an
atom, and the sticks represent the bonds.

• Although this kind of model does not

represent the actual molecular shape as
well as a space-filling model does, it
Representations of an
shows bond lengths and angles more ethanol molecule: (b) ball-and-stick,

clearly.

• It is also easier to draw and interpret.

 Tube Structure
• The tube structure is like a ball-and-stick structure without
the balls

• different atoms are depicted by different colors at the ends

of the tube that represents the link between them.

• Tube structures and line structures are useful for showing Representations of an
ethanol molecule: (c) tube,
the structures of complicated molecules.

• More sophisticated than any of these representations are

images that show the distribution of electrons in the
molecule.
 Density surface
• The cloud in Fig.d for instance, indicates how the
electrons are spread throughout an ethanol molecule:

• It is an example of a density isosurface and gives a very

real sense of the shape of the molecule (but it is hard
to interpret in terms of the location of the atoms).

• Figure e. shows the same diagram with the density iso-

Representations of an ethanol molecule:
surface made transparent and a tube structure inside, (d) density isosurface,
(e) transparent density isosurface,
which helps to clarify the significance of the isosurface
 Electrostatic potential surface
• to know the distribution of electric charge in a molecule,

• because that distribution affects its physical and chemical

properties

• the net electric potential is calculated at each point of the

density isosurface and depicted by different colors, as in
Representations of an ethanol
Fig.f. molecule: (f ) electrostatic potential
(elpot) surface.
• positively charged nuclei outweighs the negative potential
due to the negatively charged electrons; a red tint
indicates the opposite.
A molecular formula shows the composition of a molecule in terms of the numbers of atoms of each
element present. Different styles of molecular models are used to emphasize different molecular
characteristics.
 2.2.3. Ions and Ionic Compounds
• To imagine what ionic compounds look like, we have
to visualize a huge number of cations and anions
stacked together in a regular three-dimensional
formation.
• The ions bond together by the attraction between
their opposite charges.

• Each crystal of sodium chloride, for example, consists

of an orderly array of a vast number of alternating Na
and Cl ions (Fig. C.3).
• When you take a pinch of salt, each crystal that you
are picking up consists of more ions than there are
stars in the visible universe.
 Monoatomic ions (Single-atom ions)
• Explained by the nuclear model of the atom

• When an electron is removed from a neutral atom, the charge of

the remaining electrons no longer fully cancels the positive
charge of the nucleus (Fig. C.4).

• Because an electron has one unit of negative charge, each

electron removed from a neutral atom leaves behind a cation
with one additional unit of positive charge.

• For example, a sodium cation, Na, is a sodium atom that has lost
one electron.

• When a calcium atom loses two electrons, it becomes the doubly

positively charged calcium ion, Ca+2.
• Each electron gained by an atom increases the
negative charge by one unit (Fig. C.5).

• So, when a fluorine atom gains an electron, it

becomes the singly negatively charged fluoride ion, F-.

• When an oxygen atom gains two electrons, it becomes

the doubly charged oxide ion, O-2.

• When a nitrogen atom gains three electrons, it

becomes the triply charged nitride ion, N-3.
 Ions in the periodic table
• the charge of the ion is equal to
the group Number
• shows that atoms of the d-block
elements and some of the heavier
metals of Groups 13/III and 14/IV
can form cations with different
charges.
Metallic elements typically form cations,
and nonmetallic elements typically form
anions; the charge of a monatomic ion of a
main group element is related to its group
in the periodic table.
• Some of the anions present in compounds are listed in Fig. C.7.
• a main-group element on the right side of the table forms an
anion with a negative charge equal to its distance from the noble-
gas group.
• E.g. Oxygen is two groups away from the noble gases and forms
the oxide ion, O-2;
• phosphorus, which is three groups away, forms the phosphide
ion, P-3.
• In general, if the group number of a main-group element is N (in
the 1 to 18 system), the charge of the anions that it forms is N-
18.
• The pattern of ion formation by main-group elements can be
summarized by a single rule:
• For atoms toward the left or right of the periodic table, atoms
lose or gain electrons until they have the same number of
electrons as the nearest noble-gas atom.
• Thus, a magnesium atom can lose two electrons and become
Mg+2, which has the same number of electrons as an atom of
neon.
• A selenium atom can gain two electrons and become Se-2, which
has the same number of electrons as a krypton atom.
Self-Test1: What ions are
(a) iodine and
(b) aluminum likely to form?

Self-Test 2: What ions are

a) potassium and
b) sulfur likely to form?
 Diatomic and Polyatomic
• Diatomic-consist of two atoms bonded together,
• Polyatomic, consist of three or more atoms
bonded together.
• In each case, the ions have an overall positive or
negative charge.
• For example, the cyanide ion, CN-, is diatomic, and
the ammonium ion, NH+4, is polyatomic.
• The most common polyatomic anions are the
oxoanions, polyatomic anions that contain oxygen.
• They include the carbonate, CO3-2; nitrate NO3-;
phosphate, PO4-3; and sulfate, SO4-2, anions.
Self-Test 1:
Write the formula of the binary ionic
compound formed by
(a) barium and bromine;
(b) aluminum and oxygen.

Self-Test 2:
Write the formula of the binary ionic
compound formed by
(a) lithium and nitrogen;
(b) strontium and bromine.
 2.3. THE NOMENCLATURE OF COMPOUNDS
• 2.3.1. Names of Cations
The name of a monatomic cation is the same as the name of the element forming it,
with the addition of the word ion, as in “sodium ion” for Na.
When an element can form more than one kind of cation, such as Cu+ and Cu+2 from
copper, we use the oxidation number, the charge of the cation.
Thus, Cu+ is a copper(I) ion and Cu+2 is a copper(II) ion.
Most transition metals form more than one kind of ion;
Some older systems of nomenclature are still in use. For example, some cations were
once denoted by the endings -ous and -ic for the ions with lower and higher charges,
respectively.
Thus, iron(II) ions were called ferrous ions and iron(III) ions were called ferric ions
The name of a monatomic cation is the name of the element plus the word ion;
for elements that can form more than one type of cation, the oxidation number, a
Roman numeral indicating the charge, is included.
 2.3.2. Names of Anions
• Monatomic anions, such as the Cl_ ions in sodium chloride and the O-2 ions in
quicklime(CaO), are named by adding the suffix -ide and the word ion to the
first part of the name of the element (the “stem” of its name), as shown in
Table D.1;
There are three rules for naming compounds: the “ide”
rule, the “ate” rule and the “same” rule.
Rule 1: When two elements combine
the ending is usually ” ……………ide”.
metal goes first

Sodium Chloride Na Cl

Magnesium Oxide
Mg
O

Iron Sulphide Fe S
Rule 2: When three or more different
elements combine and one of them is
Oxygen, the ending will be “………ate”.
metal goes first
Cu O O
Copper Sulphate S
O O
Calcium Carbonate O
O
C
Ca
O
Rule 3: When two identical elements
combine, the name does not change.

H2 = Hydrogen H H

F F
F2 = Fluorine
N N
N2 = Nitrogen
Cl Cl
Cl2 = Chlorine

O2 = Oxygen O O
• Some elements—particularly the halogens—form more than two kinds of
oxoanions.
• The name of the oxoanion with the smallest number of oxygen atoms is
formed by adding the prefix hypo- to the -ite form of the name, as in the
hypochlorite ion, ClO-.
• The oxoanion with the most oxygen atoms is named with the prefix per-
added to the -ate form of the name.
• An example is the perchlorate ion, ClO4-
• In an older system of nomenclature, which is still quite widely used, an anion
containing hydrogen is named with the prefix bi-, as in bicarbonate ion for
HCO3-
• If two hydrogen atoms are present in an anion, as in H2PO4- , then the ion is
named as a dihydrogen anion, in this case as dihydrogen phosphate.
Names of monatomic anions end in -ide. Oxoanions are anions that contain oxygen. The suffix -ate indicates a
greater number of oxygen atoms than thesuffix -ite within the same series of oxoanions. In series of
three or more related oxoanions the prefix per- indicates the maximum number of oxygen atoms;
the prefix hypo- indicates the least number of oxygen atoms.
 2.3.3. Names of Ionic Compounds
• An ionic compound is named with the cation
name first, followed by the name of the anion;
the word ion is omitted in each case.
• The oxidation number of the cation is given if
more than one charge is possible. However, if
the cation comes from an element that exists in
only one charge state (as listed in Fig. C.6), then
the oxidation number is omitted.
• Typical names include potassium chloride (KCl),
a compound containing K and Cl ions; and
ammonium nitrate (NH4NO3), which contains
NH4 and NO3 ions.
• The cobalt chloride that contains Co+2 ions
(CoCl2) is called cobalt(II) chloride;
• CoCl3 contains Co+3 ions and is called cobalt(III)
chloride.
• Notice that the number of chloride ions is
determined by the need for charge balance.
 HOW TO NAME IONIC COMPOUNDS?

CONCEPTUAL BASIS
Ionic and molecular compounds use different procedures; so it is important first
to identify the type of compound. To name an ionic compound, we name the
ions present and then combine the names of the ions.
PROCEDURE
Step 1 Identify the cation and the anion.
• To determine the oxidation number of the cation, decide what cation
charge is required to cancel the total negative charge of the anions.
Step 2 Name the cation.
• If the metal can have more than one oxidation number (most transition
metals and some metals in Groups 12 through 15/V), give its charge as
a Roman numeral.
Step 3 Name the anion.
• If the anion is monatomic, change the ending of the element’s name to -
ide.
 For an oxoanion:
• (a) For elements that form two oxoanions, give the ion with the larger number
of oxygen atoms the suffix -ate and that with the smaller number of oxygen
atoms the suffix -ite.
• (b) For elements that form a series of four oxoanions, add the prefix hypo- to
the name of the oxoanion with the smallest number of oxygen atoms.
• Add the prefix per- to the oxoanion with the highest number of oxygen atoms.
• If hydrogen is present, add “hydrogen” to the name of the anion.
• If two hydrogen atoms are present, add “dihydrogen” to the name of the anion.
Step 4 If water molecules appear in the formula, the compound is a hydrate. Add the word hydrate
with a Greek prefix corresponding to the number in front of H2O.
Ionic compounds are named by starting with the name of the cation (with its oxidation number if more
than one charge is possible), followed by the name of the anion; hydrates are named by adding the word
hydrate, preceded by a Greek prefix indicating the number of water molecules in the formula unit.
 2.3.4. Names of Inorganic Molecular Compounds
• Many simple inorganic molecular compounds are named by using the Greek
prefixes in Table D.2 to indicate the number of each type of atom present.
• Usually, we do not use a prefix if only one atom of an element is present; for
example, NO2 is nitrogen dioxide. An important exception to this rule is
carbon monoxide, CO.
• When naming common binary molecular compounds—molecular compounds
built from two elements—name the element that occurs further to the right
in the periodic table second, with its ending changed to -ide:
• phosphorus trichloride, PCl3 dinitrogen oxide, N2O
• sulfur hexafluoride, SF6
• dinitrogen pentoxide, N2O5
 HOW TO NAME SIMPLE INORGANIC MOLECULAR COMPOUNDS
• CONCEPTUAL BASIS

• The aim of chemical nomenclature is to be simple but unambiguous. A systematic name specifies the
elements present in the molecule and the numbers of atoms of each element.

• PROCEDURE

• Determine the type of compound and then apply the corresponding rules.

• Binary molecular compounds other than acids

• The compound is generally not an acid if its formula does not begin with H.

• Step 1 Write the name of the first element, followed by the name of the second, with its ending changed to -
ide.

• Step 2 Add Greek prefixes to indicate the number of atoms of each element. “Mono-” is usually omitted.
Acids
An inorganic acid has a formula that typically begins with H; oxoacids have formulas that begin with H and end in
O. We distinguish between binary hydrides, such as HX, which are not named as acids, and their aqueous
solutions, HX(aq), which are.
Step 1 If the compound is a binary acid in solution, add “hydro . . . ic acid” to the root of the element’s name.
Step 2 If the compound is an oxoacid, derive the name of the acid from the name of the polyatomic ion that it
produces, In general, -ate ions come from -ic acids -ite ions come from -ous acids
Retain any prefix, such as hypo- or per-.

Exercise1: Name (a) HCN(aq); (b) BCl3; (c) IF5.

Exercise2: Name (a) PCl3; (b) SO3; (c) HBr(aq).
Exercise 3: Write the formulas for (a) vanadium(V) oxide; (b) calcium carbide; (c) germanium tetrafluoride; (d)
dinitrogen trioxide.

Exercise 4: Write the formulas for (a) cesium sulfide tetrahydrate; (b) manganese(VII) oxide; (c) hydrogen
cyanide (a poisonous gas); (d) disulfur dichloride.
 Chapter 3: Composition of Substances and Solutions
3.1.1. MOLES AND MOLAR MASSES
Mole:
• Chemists report numbers of atoms, ions, and molecules
in terms of a unit called a “mole.”
• A mole is the analog of the wholesaler’s “dozen.
• 1 mole of objects contains the same number of objects
as there are atoms in exactly 12 g of carbon-12.
• To see what we mean by 1 mol, we could weigh out 12 g
of carbon-12 (Fig. E.1).
• But how can we tell how many atoms are present?
Because counting atoms directly is impractical, we use
an indirect route based on the mass of one atom. The
mass of a carbon-12 atom has been found by mass
spectrometry to be 1.992 65 *10-23 g.
• It follows that the number of atoms in exactly 12 g of
carbon-12 is
• Because the mole is equal to this
number, we can apply the
definition to any object, not just
carbon atoms (Fig. E.2):
• 1 mol of objects means 6.0221*
1023 of those objects.
FIGURE E.2 Each sample consists of 1 mol of
• Therefore, 1 mol of atoms of any atoms of the element. Clockwise from the
element, 1 mol of ions, and 1 mol of upper right are 32 g of sulfur, 201 g of
mercury, 207 g oflead, 64 g of copper, and 12
molecules each contain 6.0221 *1023 g of carbon.
atoms, ions, and molecules,
respectively.
The number of objects per mole, 6.0221 1023mol1, is called Avogadro’s
constant, NA, in honor of the nineteenth-century Italian scientist Amedeo
Avogadro
The mole is the unit for the physical property formally called the amount of substance, n.
• Avogadro’s constant is used
to convert between the
chemical amount (the
number of moles) and the
number of atoms, ions, or
molecules in that amount:
EXAMPLE E.1 Converting number of atoms into an amount in moles
Nanotechnology researchers have developed a hydrogen storage device capable of storing 1.29 1024
hydrogen atoms. What is the chemical amount (in moles) of hydrogen atoms that can be stored in the device?

The amounts of atoms, ions, or

molecules in a sample are expressed
in moles, and Avogadro’s constant, NA,
is used to convert between numbers of
these particles and the numbers of
moles.
 3.1.2. Molar Mass
How can we determine the amount of substance present if we can’t
count the atoms directly?
We can find the amount of substance if we know the mass of the
sample and the molar mass, M, the mass per mole of particles:
• The molar mass of an element is the mass per mole of its atoms.
• The molar mass of a molecular compound is the mass per mole of its
molecules.
• The molar mass of an ionic compound is the mass per mole of its
formula units.
EXAMPLE E.2 Calculating the amount of atoms in a sample
Calculate (a) the amount and (b) the number of F atoms in 22.5 g of fluorine. The molar mass of fluorine atoms
is 19.00 gmol-1, or, more specifically, 19.00 g(mol F)-1.
Exercise1: The mass of a copper coin is
3.20 g. Suppose it were pure copper.
(a) How many moles of Cu atoms would
the coin contain, given a molar mass
of Cu of 63.55 gmol1?
(b) How many Cu atoms are present?
[Answer: 0.0504 mol Cu; 3.03 10-22 Cu
atoms]
Exercise2: In one day, 5.4 kg of
aluminum was collected from a recycling
bin.
(a) How many moles of Al atoms did the
bin contain, given that the molar mass
of Al is 26.98 gmol-1?
(b) How many Al atoms were collected?
The molar masses of elements are determined by using mass spectrometry
to measure the masses of the individual isotopes and their abundances. The
mass per mole of atoms is the mass of an individual atom multiplied by
Avogadro’s constant (the number of atoms per mole):
M = matomNA

Anticipate Because the more abundant isotope is chlorine-35, we should expect to find that the molar mass of a
typical sample will be close to 35 gmol1.
PLAN First calculate the average atomic mass of the isotopes by adding together the individual masses, each
multiplied by the fraction that represents its abundance. Then obtain the molar mass, the mass per mole of
atoms, by multiplying the average atomic mass by Avogadro’s constant.
To calculate the molar masses of compounds, we use the molar masses of the elements present: the molar
mass of a compound is the sum of the molar masses of the elements that make up the molecule or the formula
unit. We need only note how many times each atom or ion appears in the molecular formula or the formula unit
of the ionic compound.
For example, 1 mol of the ionic compound Al2(SO4)3 contains 2 mol Al,3 mol S, and 12 mol O. Therefore, the
molar mass of Al2(SO4)3 is

EXAMPLE E.4 Calculating the mass of a sample corresponding to a given amount in moles

Suppose we are preparing a solution of potassium permanganate, KMnO4, and need about 0.10 mol of the
compound (that is, 0.10 mol KMnO4). How many grams of the compound do we need?

PLAN To find the mass of a stated amount of compound, we multiply the amount by the molar mass
of the compound.
 3.2. DETERMINATION OF CHEMICAL FORMULAS
• This section focuses on the first step in identifying the molecular structure, the
determination of the “empirical formula” and the “molecular formula” of the
compound
• First, consider the empirical formula:
• The empirical formula shows the relative numbers of atoms of each element
present in the compound.
• For example, the empirical formula of glucose, which is CH2O, tells us that carbon,
hydrogen, and oxygen atoms are present in the ratio 1:2:1. The elements are
present in these proportions regardless of the size of the sample.
• After the empirical formula has been determined, the next step is to determine the
molecular formula
• The molecular formula shows the actual numbers of atoms of each element in a
molecule.
 3.2.1. Mass Percentage Composition
• To determine the empirical formula of a compound, we begin by measuring
the mass of each element present in a sample.
• The result is usually reported as the mass percentage composition—that is,
the mass of each element expressed as a percentage of the total mass:

EXAMPLE F.1 Calculating the mass percentage of an element in a compound

Suppose we are generating hydrogen from water to use as a fuel and need to know the mass of hydrogen that
a given mass of water can provide. What is the mass percentage of hydrogen in water?
Anticipate Even though there are two hydrogen atoms in each H2O molecule, because hydrogen atoms are
much lighter than oxygen atoms, they contribute only a small mass to each molecule and we should therefore
expect only a small mass percentage contribution.
PLAN To calculate the mass percentage of hydrogen in water, find the mass of H atoms in1 mol H2O
molecules by noting that there are 2 mol H in 1 mol H2O, dividing that mass by the mass of 1 mol H2O, and
multiplying by 100%.
 3.2.2. Determining Empirical Formulas
• It gives the relative numbers of atoms of each element in the compound.
• To convert the mass percentages into an empirical formula, we must convert the mass percentage of each
type of atom into the relative number of atoms of that element.

EXAMPLE F.2 Determining the elemental composition from mass percentage composition
• Suppose that an analytical laboratory reported a composition of 40.9% carbon, 4.58% hydrogen, and 54.5%
oxygen for a sample of vitamin C. In what atom ratios are the elements present in vitamin C?

PLAN We consider a sample of exactly 100 g, then convert the masses into amounts in moles by dividing the
mass percentage for each element by the element’s molar mass. We denote the amount of a substance J by
n(J).
 EXAMPLE F.3 Determining the empirical formula from mass percentage
composition
• The mass percentage composition of a compound that assists in the
coagulation of blood is 76.71% C, 7.02% H, and 16.27% N. Determine the
empirical formula of the compound.

• PLAN Divide each mass percentage by the molar mass of the corresponding
element to obtain the number of moles of that element found in exactly 100
g of the compound.
• Divide the number of moles of each element by the smallest number of
moles. If fractional numbers result, then multiply by the factor that gives the
smallest whole numbers of moles.
A note on good practice: Note
that the number of significant
figures in the data controls
the number of significant figures in
the calculated amounts.

Because 5.501 is approximately

11/2, we multiply all the numbers
by 2 to get the ratios
11.00:12.0:2.000.

The empirical formula is therefore

C11H12N2.
 3.2.3. Determining Molecular Formulas
• We have determined that the empirical formula of vitamin C is C3H4O3.
• However, the empirical formula tells us only that the C, H, and O atoms are
present in the sample in the ratio 3:4:3, not the number of each type of
atom in a molecule.
• The molecular formula could be C3H4O3, C6H8O6, C9H12O9, or any other
whole-number multiple of the empirical formula.
• To find the molecular formula of a compound, we need one more piece of
information—its molar mass.
• Then all we have to do is to calculate how many empirical formula units are
needed to account for the molar mass.
• One of the best ways of determining the molar mass of an organic
compound is by mass spectrometry.
 EXAMPLE F.4 Determining the molecular formula from the
empirical formula
• Mass spectrometry has been used to show that the molar mass of vitamin
C is 176.12 gmol-1.
• Given its empirical formula of C3H4O3, what is the molecular formula of
vitamin C?

• PLAN To find the number of formula units needed to account for the
observed molar mass of a compound, divide the molar mass of the
compound by the molar mass of the empirical formula unit.
The molecular formula of a compound is found by determining how many empirical formula units
are needed to account for the measured molar mass of the compound.
• Exercise1: The molar mass of styrene, which is used in the
manufacture of the plastic polystyrene, is 104 gmol-1, and its
empirical formula is CH. Deduce its molecular formula.
[Answer: C8H8]
• 2. The molar mass of oxalic acid, an acid present in rhubarb, is 90.0
gmol1, and its empirical formula is CHO2. What is its molecular
formula?
 3.3. MIXTURES AND SOLUTIONS

• are mixtures of these simpler substances, with one substance mingled

with another.

• 2 or more substances that are not chemically bonded

• For example, air, blood, and seawater are mixtures.

• A medicine, such as a cough syrup, is often a mixture of various

ingredients that has been formulated to achieve an overall biological
effect. Much the same can be said of a perfume.
 3.3.1. Classifying Mixtures

the molecules or ions of the

components are so well mixed
that the composition is the same
throughout, no matter how small
the sample.

A homogeneous
mixture is also
called a solution.

Some mixtures have component particles that are so large we can see
them with an optical microscope or even the unaided eye
 • When we use the everyday term dissolving, we mean the process of
producing a solution.
• Usually the component of the solution present in the larger amount (water in
these examples) is called the solvent, and any dissolved substance is a
solute (Fig. G.3).

• In mixtures, the properties of the constituents are retained; they differ

from compounds, as summarized in Table G.1.
• Mixtures are classified as homogeneous or heterogeneous; solutions are
homogeneous mixtures of two or more substances and can be solid,
liquid, or gaseous.
• Beverages and seawater are examples of aqueous solutions, solutions in which
the solvent is water.

• Aqueous solutions are very common in everyday life and in chemical laboratories;
for that reason, most of the solutions mentioned in this text are aqueous.

• Nonaqueous solutions are solutions in which the solvent is not water. Although
they are less common than aqueous solutions, nonaqueous solutions have
important uses.

• There are also solid solutions, in which the solvent is a solid. An example is a
common form of brass that can be regarded as a solution of zinc in copper.
 3.3.2. Separation Techniques
• To analyze the composition of any
sample that we suspect is a mixture,
we first separate its components by
physical means and then identify
each individual substance present
(Fig. G.5).
• Common physical separation
techniques include decanting,
filtration, chromatography, and
distillation, Magnet, Centrifuge, FIGURE G.5 The hierarchy of materials: matter,
whether solid, liquid, or gas, consists of either
Filtration, Evaporation mixtures or substances; substances consist of either
compounds or elements. Physical techniques are
used to separate mixtures into pure substances.
Chemical techniques are used to separate
compounds into elements.
• Decanting makes use of differences in density.
• One liquid floats on another liquid or lies above a solid and is poured off.
• Filtration is used to separate substances when there is a difference in
solubility (the ability to dissolve in a particular solvent).
• The sample is stirred with a liquid and then poured through a fine mesh, the
filter.
• Components of the mixture that have dissolved in the liquid pass through the
filter, whereas solid components that do not dissolve are captured by the
filter.
• The technique can be used to separate sugar from sand because sugar is
soluble in water but sand is not.
• Filtration is a common first stage in the treatment of domestic water supplies.
 • Chromatography relies on the different
abilities of substances to adsorb, or stick,
to surfaces (Fig. G.6).
• Distillation makes use of
differences in boiling
FIGURE G.6 In paper chromatography, the
points to separate
components of a mixture are separated by
mixtures. When a solution
washing them along a paper—the support—
is distilled, the
with a solvent. A primitive form of the technique
components of the
is shown here. On the left is a dry filter paper to
mixture boil away at
which a drop of green food coloring was applied.
different temperatures
Solvent was then poured on to the center of the
and condense in a cooled
filter paper. The blue and yellow dyes that were
tube called a condenser
combined to make the green color begin to
(Fig. G.7).
separate. The filter paper on the right was allowed
• Distillation can be used to
to dry after the solvent had spread out to the
remove water (which boils
edges of the paper, carrying the two dyes to
at 100°C) from table salt
different distances as it spread. The dried support
(sodium chloride), which
showing the separated components of a mixture is
does not even melt until
called a chromatogram.
801°C; the solid salt is left
behind when the water
evaporates. FIGURE G.7 The technique of distillation, which is used to separate a low-boiling
liquid from a dissolved solid or a liquid with a much higher boiling point.
 3.3.3. Concentration
• In chemistry it is often important to know the amount of solute in a given
volume of solution.
• The molar concentration, c, of a solute in a solution, which is widely but
unofficially called the “molarity” of the solute, is the amount of solute
molecules or formula units (in moles) present in a given volume of the
solution (in liters):
 EXAMPLE G.1 Calculating the molarity of a solute
• Suppose we dissolved 10.0 g of cane sugar in enough water to make 200.
mL of solution, which we might do (with less precision) if we were making a
glass of lemonade. Cane sugar is sucrose (C12H22O11, molar mass 342 gmol-
1). What is the molarity of sucrose in the solution?

• Anticipate The mass of sugar is only about 3% of the mass of 1 mole of

sugar; therefore, although only 0.200 L is being prepared, we should expect
a small concentration.
• PLAN The definition of molar concentration (molarity) is c =n/V; we first
need to convert the mass of solute to an amount in moles (by using n
=m/M) and then substitute that amount into this expression for c.
 FIGURE G.8 The steps in making up
a solution of known molarity. A known
mass of the solute is dispensed into a
Exercise 1: If instead of 10.0 g, we were to dissolve 20.0 g of cane volumetric flask (top). Some water is
sugar in the same volume of solution, what would be the molarity of the added to dissolve it (center). Finally,
sugar? [Answer: 0.292 M C12H22O11(aq)] water is added up to the mark on the
stem of the flask (bottom). The
2. What is the molarity of sodium sulfate in a solution prepared by bottom of the solution’s meniscus (the
dissolving 15.5 g of sodium sulfate in enough water to make 350. mL of curved top surface of the liquid)
solution? should be level with the mark.
 EXAMPLE G.2 Determining the mass of solute required
for a given concentration
• Suppose we were asked to prepare 250. mL of a solution that was
approximately 0.0380 M CuSO4(aq) from solid copper(II) sulfate
pentahydrate, CuSO45H2O. What mass of the solid do we need?

• PLAN Find the amount of solute from the relation n cV, then convert moles
of solute to grams by using m nM.
• Exercise1 : Calculate the mass of glucose needed to prepare 150. mL of
0.442 M C6H12O6(aq). [Answer: 11.9 g]
• 2. Calculate the mass of oxalic acid needed to prepare 50.00 mL of 0.125 M
C2H2O4(aq).
EXAMPLE G.3 Calculating the volume of solution that contains a given amount of solute

Suppose we want to measure out 0.760 mmol CH3COOH, acetic acid, an acid found in vinegar and often used
in the laboratory, and we have available 0.0380M CH3COOH(aq). What volume of solution should we use?

PLAN Noting that c n/V can be rearranged into V n/c, to find the volume we divide the amount of solute by its
molarity. It is best first to convert the units of amount from millimole (mmol) to mole (mol).
Self-Test G.3A What volume of 1.25 10–3 M C6H12O6(aq) contains 1.44
mol of glucose molecules?
Self-Test G.3B What volume of 0.358 M HCl(aq) contains 2.55 mmol HCl?
 3.3.4. Dilution
• A common space-saving practice in chemistry is to store a solution in a
concentrated form called a stock solution and then to dilute it, or reduce its
concentration, to whatever concentration is needed.
• To dilute a stock solution to a desired concentration, we use a pipet to
transfer the appropriate volume of stock solution to a volumetric flask.
• Then we add enough solvent to increase the volume of the solution to its
final value
How to calculate volume of stock solution required for a
given dilution
 EXAMPLE G.4 Calculating the volume of stock solution to dilute
• We need to prepare 250. mL of 1.25 103 M NaOH(aq) and will use a 0.0380 M
NaOH(aq) stock solution. How much stock solution do we need?
• Anticipate Because the stock solution is about 30 times more concentrated
than the diluted solution, we should expect to use about 1/30 of 250. mL, or
just over 8 mL. When a solution is
diluted to a larger
volume, the total amount
of solute in the solution
does not change, but the
concentration of solute is
reduced.