Chapter 3, Problem 3.50P

Interpretation Introduction

Interpretation:

The empirical formula of nicotine that contains $6.16\text{ mmol}$ of carbon $\left(\text{C}\right)$, $8.56\text{ mmol}$ of hydrogen $\left(\text{H}\right)$, and $1.23\text{ mmol}$ of nitrogen $\left(\text{N}\right)$ are to be determined.

Concept Introduction:

An empirical formula gives the simplest whole number ratio of atoms of each element present in a compound.

Following are the steps to determine the empirical formula of a compound when the millimoles/fractional amount of each element is given,

Step 1: Write the amount $\left(\text{mmol}\right)$ of each element as the subscript of the element’s symbol to obtain a preliminary formula for the compound.

Step 2: Convert the millimoles of each element to the whole number subscripts. The steps for this math conversion are as follows:

1. (a) Each subscript is divided by the smallest subscript.
2. (b) If the whole number is not obtained after division, multiply the obtained subscripts by
3. (c) the smallest integer. This gives the empirical formula of the compound.