Question
The table shows the relative atomic masses of some common elements. Use this information to work out the relative formula mass of calcium carbonate. The chemical formula for calcium carbonate is CaCO_(3) Enter a number
Answer
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(159 Votes)
Gilbert
Professional · Tutor for 6 years
Answer
Using the formula, we simply substitute the respective atomic masses for each atom:\( \text{Total Mass} = 40 \, (for \,Calcium) + ( 12 \, (for \, Carbon) + 16 \, (for \, Oxygen) \times 3) = 40 + 12 + 48 = 100 \)Thus, the relative formula mass of calcium carbonate (CaCO3) is 100.
Explanation
## Step 1: # Identify the AtomsThe first step to finding the relative formula mass is to identify the atoms that make up the compound. In this case, these would be Calcium (abbreviated as Ca), Carbon (C), and Oxygen (O). ## Step 2:# Calculate each Atom' s Relative Atomic Mass Next, calculate the relative atomic mass of each atom. This information can already be found on the provided data. According to the data, the relative atomic mass for Calcium is 40, Carbon is 12 and Oxygen is 16.## Step 3:# Calculate the Total Formula Mass Finally, calculate the relative formula mass by multiplying the quantity of each atom on the molecule by its atomic mass, and adding up all these products. In our case, there is 1 Calcium atom, 1 Carbon atom, and 3 Oxygen atoms.### \( \text{The Formula to Calculate Total Relative Formula mass} \Longrightarrow \text{Total Mass } = \text{Mass of Ca + (Mass of C + Mass Of O} \times \text{3)} \) The above equation accounts for the number of atoms of each type which are present in the molecule (i.e., only one calcium atom, one carbon atom, and three oxygen atoms).