Question

Does the percent by mass of each element in a compound depend on the amount of that element used to make the compound? Explain.

Short answer

Yes, percent by mass of each element in a compound depends on the amount of that element used to make the compound.

Step-by-step solution

Mass percent of an element

Mass percent is calculated using the following formula:

$\mathbf{Mass}\mathbf{}\mathbf{percent}\mathbf{}\mathbf{=}\frac{\mathbf{Mass}\mathbf{}\mathbf{of}\mathbf{}\mathbf{the}\mathbf{}\mathbf{element}\mathbf{}\mathbf{in}\mathbf{}\mathbf{a}\mathbf{}\mathbf{compound}\mathbf{}}{\mathbf{Mass}\mathbf{}\mathbf{of}\mathbf{}\mathbf{the}\mathbf{}\mathbf{compound}\mathbf{}}\mathbf{\times }\mathbf{100}$

Mass of each element in a compound

From the formula we can say that higher the mass of the element, higher will be its mass percentage. Thus, percent by mass of each element in a compound depends on the amount of that element used to make the compound.