The Mole Concept

Christopher G. Hamaker, Illinois State University, Normal IL 2005, Prentice Hall

Avogadros Number
Avogadros Number (symbol N) is the number of atoms in 12.01 grams of carbon.
Its numerical value is 6.02 1023. Therefore, a 12.01 g sample of carbon contains 6.02 1023 carbon atoms.

The Mole
The mole (mol) is a unit of measure for an amount of a chemical substance.
A mole is Avogadros number of particles, that is 6.02 1023 particles. 1 mol = Avogadros Number = 6.02 1023 units

We can use the mole relationship to convert between the number of particles and the mass of a substance.

How Big Is a Mole?

The volume occupied by one mole of softballs would be about the size of the Earth.
One mole of Olympic shot put balls has about the same mass as the Earth.

Mole Calculations
We will be using the Unit Analysis Method again.
Recall:
First we write down the unit asked for

Second we write down the given value

Third we apply unit factor(s) to convert the given units to the desired units

Mole Calculations I
How many sodium atoms are in 0.120 mol Na?
Step 1: we want atoms of Na Step 2: we have 0.120 mol Na

Step 3: 1 mole Na = 6.02 1023 atoms Na

0.120 mol Na

6.02 1023 atoms Na

1 mol Na

= 7.22 1022 atoms Na

Mole Calculations I
How many moles of potassium are in 1.25 1021 atoms K?
Step 1: we want moles K Step 2: we have 1.25 1021 atoms K Step 3: 1 mole K = 6.02 1023 atoms K
1.25 1021 atoms K

1 mol K
6.02 1023 atoms K

= 2.08 10-3 mol K

Molar Mass
The atomic mass of any substance expressed in grams is the molar mass (MM) of that substance.
The atomic mass of iron is 55.85 amu.

Therefore, the molar mass of iron is 55.85 g/mol.

Since oxygen occurs naturally as a diatomic, O2, the molar mass of oxygen gas is 2 times 16.00 g or 32.00 g/mol.

Calculating Molar Mass

The molar mass of a substance is the sum of the molar masses of each element.
What is the molar mass of magnesium nitrate, Mg(NO3)2? The sum of the atomic masses is:
24.31 + 2(14.01 + 16.00 + 16.00 + 16.00) = 24.31 + 2(62.01) = 148.33 amu

The molar mass for Mg(NO3)2 is 148.33 g/mol.

Mole Calculations II
Now we will use the molar mass of a compound to convert between grams of a substance and moles or particles of a substance.
6.02 1023 particles = 1 mol = molar mass

If we want to convert particles to mass, we must first convert particles to moles and than we can convert moles to mass.

Mass-Mole Calculations
What is the mass of 1.33 moles of titanium, Ti?
We want grams, we have 1.33 moles of titanium. Use the molar mass of Ti: 1 mol Ti = 47.88 g Ti 47.88 g Ti 1.33 mole Ti = 63.7 g Ti 1 mole Ti

Mole Calculations II
What is the mass of 2.55 1023 atoms of lead?
We want grams, we have atoms of lead. Use Avogadros number and the molar mass of Pb
2.55 1023 207.2 g Pb atoms Pb 23 1 mole Pb 6.0210 atoms Pb 1 mol Pb

= 87.8 g Pb

Mole Calculations II
How many O2 molecules are present in 0.470 g of oxygen gas?

We want molecules O2, we have grams O2.

Use Avogadros number and the molar mass of O2
1 mol O2 6.021023 molecules O2 0.470 g O2 1 mole O2 32.00 g O2

8.84 1021 molecules O2

Gas Density
The density of gases is much less than that of liquids.
We can calculate the density of any gas at STP easily. The formula for gas density at STP is:
molar mass in grams
molar volume in liters = density, g/L

Calculating Gas Density

What is the density of ammonia gas, NH3, at STP?
First we need the molar mass for ammonia;
14.01 + 3(1.01) = 17.04 g/mol

The molar volume NH3 at STP is 22.4 L/mol.

Density is mass/volume:
17.04 g/mol 22.4 L/mol = 0.761 g/L

Molar Mass of a Gas

We can also use molar volume to calculate the molar mass of an unknown gas.
1.96 g of an unknown gas occupies 1.00L at STP. What is the molar mass? We want g/mol, we have g/L. 1.96 g 22.4 L = 43.9 g/mol 1.00 L 1 mole

Mole Unit Factors

We now have three interpretations for the mole:
1 mol = 6.02 1023 particles 1 mol = molar mass 1 mol = 22.4 L at STP for a gas This gives us 3 unit factors to use to convert between moles, particles, mass, and volume.

Mole-Volume Calculation
A sample of methane, CH4, occupies 4.50 L at STP. How many moles of methane are present?
We want moles, we have volume.

Use molar volume of a gas: 1 mol = 22.4 L

1 mol CH4 4.50 L CH4 = 0.201 mol CH4 22.4 L CH4

Mass-Volume Calculation
What is the mass of 3.36 L of ozone gas, O3, at STP?
We want mass O3, we have 3.36 L O3.

Convert volume to moles then moles to mass:

1 mol O3 48.00 g O3 3.36 L O3 22.4 L O3 1 mol O3 = 7.20 g O3

Molecule-Volume Calculation
How many molecules of hydrogen gas, H2, occupy 0.500 L at STP?
We want molecules H2, we have 0.500 L H2.

Convert volume to moles and then moles to molecules:

1 mol H2 6.021023 molecules H2 0.500 L H2 22.4 L H2 1 mole H2

= 1.34 1022 molecules H2

Law of Definite Composition

The law of definite composition states that Compounds always contain the same elements in a constant proportion by mass. Sodium chloride is always 39.3% sodium and 60.7% chlorine by mass, no matter what its source. Water is always 11.2% hydrogen and 88.8% oxygen by mass.

Law of Definite Composition

A drop of water, a glass of water, and a lake of water all contain hydrogen and oxygen in the same percent by mass.

Chemical Formulas
A particle composed of two or more nonmetal atoms is a molecule.

A chemical formula expresses the number and types of atoms in a molecule. The chemical formula of sulfuric acid is H2SO4.

Writing Chemical Formulas

The number of each type of atom in a molecule is indicated with a subscript in a chemical formula. If there is only one atom of a certain type, no 1 us used. A molecule of the vitamin niacin has 6 carbon atoms, 6 hydrogen atoms, 2 nitrogen atoms, and 1 oxygen atom. What is the chemical formula?

C6H6N2O

Interpreting Chemical Formulas

Some chemical formulas use parenthesis to clarify atomic composition. Antifreeze has chemical formula C2H4(OH)2. There are 2 carbon atoms, 4 hydrogen atoms, and 2 OH units, giving a total of 6 hydrogen atoms and 2 oxygen atoms.

Antifreeze has a total of 10 atoms.

Percent Composition
The percent composition of a compound lists the mass percent of each element.
For example, the percent composition of water, H2O is:
11% hydrogen and 89% oxygen

All water contains 11% hydrogen and 89% oxygen by mass.

Calculating Percent Composition

There are a few steps to calculating the percent composition of a compound. Lets practice using H2O.
Assume you have 1 mole of the compound. One mole of H2O contains 2 mol of hydrogen and 1 mol of oxygen.

2(1.01 g H) + 1(16.00 g O) = molar mass H2O

2.02 g H + 16.00 g O = 18.02 g H2O

Calculating Percent Composition

Next, find the percent composition of water by comparing the masses of hydrogen and oxygen in water to the molar mass of water:
2.02 g H 100% = 11.2% H 18.02 g H2O 16.00 g O 100% = 88.79% O 18.02 g H2O

Percent Composition Problem

TNT (trinitrotoluene) is a white crystalline substance that explodes at 240C. Calculate the percent composition of TNT, C7H5(NO2)3.
7(12.01 g C) + 5(1.01 g H) + 3 (14.01 g N + 32.00 g O) = g C7H5(NO2)3

84.07 g C + 5.05 g H + 42.03 g N + 96.00 g O = 227.15 g C7H5(NO2)3.

Percent Composition of TNT

84.07 g C 100% = 37.01% C 227.15 g TNT 1.01 g H 100% = 2.22% H 227.15 g TNT 42.03 g N 100% = 18.50% N 227.15 g TNT 96.00 g O 100% = 42.26% O 227.15 g TNT

Empirical Formulas
The empirical formula of a compound is the simplest whole number ratio of ions in a formula unit or atoms of each element in a molecule. The molecular formula of benzene is C6H6
The empirical formula of benzene is CH.

The molecular formula of octane is C8H18

The empirical formula of octane is C4H9.

Calculating Empirical Formulas

We can calculate the empirical formula of a compound from its composition data.
We can determine the mole ratio of each element from the mass to determine the formula of radium oxide, Ra?O?. A 1.640 g sample of radium metal was heated to produce 1.755 g of radium oxide. What is the empirical formula? We have 1.640 g Ra and 1.755-1.640 = 0.115 g O.

Calculating Empirical Formulas

The molar mass of radium is 226.03 g/mol and the molar mass of oxygen is 16.00 g/mol.
1 mol Ra = 0.00726 mol Ra 1.640 g Ra 226.03 g Ra 1 mol O = 0.00719 mol O 0.115 g O 16.00 g O

We get Ra0.00726O0.00719. Simplify the mole ratio by dividing by the smallest number. We get Ra1.01O1.00 = RaO is the empirical formula.

Empirical Formulas from Percent Composition

We can also use percent composition data to calculate empirical formulas.
Assume that you have 100 grams of sample. Benzene is 92.2% carbon and 7.83% hydrogen, what is the empirical formula.

If we assume 100 grams of sample, we have 92.2 g carbon and 7.83 g hydrogen.

Empirical Formulas from Percent Composition

Calculate the moles of each element:
1 mol C = 7.68 mol C 92.2 g C 12.01 g C 7.83 g H 1 mol H = 7.75 mol H 1.01 g H

The ratio of elements in benzene is C7.68H7.75. Divide by the smallest number to get the formula. C
7.68 7.68

7.75 7.68

= C1.00H1.01 = CH

Molecular Formulas
The empirical formula for benzene is CH. This represents the ratio of C to H atoms of benzene.
The actual molecular formula is some multiple of the empirical formula, (CH)n. Benzene has a molar mass of 78 g/mol. Find n to find the molecular formula. (CH)n 78 g/mol = CH 13 g/mol n = 6 and the molecular formula is C6H6.

Conclusions
Avogadros number is 6.02 1023 and is one mole of any substance. The molar mass of a substance is the sum of the atomic masses of each element in the formula. At STP, 1 mole of any gas occupies 22.4 L.

Conclusions Continued
We can use the following flow chart for mole calculations:

Conclusions Continued
The percent composition of a substance is the mass percent of each element in that substance. The empirical formula of a substance is the simplest whole number ratio of the elements in the formula. The molecular formula is a multiple of the empirical formula.