Understanding a chemical compound's composition involves identifying the elements present and their relative proportions. The empirical formula of a compound is the simplest positive integer ratio of atoms present in a compound. Unlike the molecular formula, the empirical formula does not tell us the exact number of atoms but gives us the simplest ratio reflecting the relative numbers of each type of atom.
For example, glucose has a molecular formula of \(C_6H_{12}O_6\), but its empirical formula is CH2O, indicating that for every carbon atom, there are two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom. To determine an empirical formula, one must:
- Convert the percentage composition to mass.
- Convert the mass to moles.
- Determine the simplest whole-number ratio of moles of each element.
In the exercise provided, we use these steps to find that the empirical formula for the silver compound consists of one atom of silver, one atom of nitrogen, and three atoms of oxygen, or AgNO
3.