Home
/
Chemistry
/
75% of Cl atoms have a mass number of 35, whilst the remaining 25% have a mass number of 38. What is the relative atomic mass of chlorine? Give an exact answer.

Question

75%  of Cl atoms have a mass number of 35,
whilst the remaining 25%  have a mass number
of 38.
What is the relative atomic mass of chlorine?
Give an exact answer.

75% of Cl atoms have a mass number of 35, whilst the remaining 25% have a mass number of 38. What is the relative atomic mass of chlorine? Give an exact answer.

expert verifiedVerification of experts

Answer

4.0198 Voting
avatar
ArthurVeteran · Tutor for 10 years

Answer

The relative atomic mass of chlorine is \(35.75\).

Explain

## Step 1:<br />The relative atomic mass of an element is the weighted average of the atomic masses of its isotopes, based on their natural abundances.<br /><br />## Step 2:<br />To calculate the relative atomic mass of chlorine, we need to multiply the mass number of each isotope by its relative abundance (as proportions of 1) and sum the results.<br /><br />### **Formula:**<br />\[\text{Relative atomic mass} = (\text{relative abundance of isotope 1} \times \text{mass number of isotope 1}) + (\text{relative abundance of isotope 2} \times \text{mass number of isotope 2})\]<br /><br />## Step 3:<br />Substituting the given values into the formula:<br /><br />\[\text{Relative atomic mass of chlorine} = (0.75 \times 35) + (0.25 \times 38)\]<br /><br />## Step 4:<br />Perform the calculations:<br /><br />\[0.75 \times 35 = 26.25\]<br /><br />\[0.25 \times 38 = 9.5\]<br /><br />## Step 5:<br />Sum the results:<br /><br />\[26.25 + 9.5 = 35.75\]
Click to rate:

Hot Questions

More x