Question

The mass fraction of an element present in a compound can be obtained by comparing the mass of the particular element present in 1 mol of the compound to the ______ mass of the compound.

Short answer

The mass fraction of an element present in a compound can be obtained by comparing the mass of the particular element present in 1 mol of the compound to the \(molar\) mass of the compound.

Step-by-step solution

Identify the missing term

The mass fraction of an element present in a compound can be obtained by comparing the mass of the particular element present in 1 mol of the compound to the molar mass of the compound. So the completed statement is: The mass fraction of an element present in a compound can be obtained by comparing the mass of the particular element present in 1 mol of the compound to the molar mass of the compound.

Key concepts

Mass Fraction

When discussing the mass fraction, it's important to understand that it represents how much an individual element contributes to the total mass of a compound. The mass fraction is calculated by taking the mass of a specific element in one mole of the compound and dividing it by the compound's total molar mass.
For example: if you have a compound with a total molar mass of 180 g/mol, and the element makes up 36 g/mol of that, the mass fraction would be 36/180, which simplifies to 0.2.

• This fraction tells us that 20% of the compound's mass is from that element.
• Mass fraction is useful because it can help you determine how much of a certain element is present in any amount of the compound.

Understanding this concept is crucial in chemistry as it helps in converting between mass and moles for chemical calculations.

Element

An element is a pure substance that consists entirely of one type of atom. Elements are the building blocks of all matter and are defined by the number of protons in their atomic nuclei, known as their atomic number.
Each element has its own unique properties and is represented by a symbol on the periodic table, such as H for hydrogen or O for oxygen.

• There are over 100 known elements.
• Each element can combine in various ways to form compounds.
• Elements can exist as single atoms or as diatomic molecules like O₂ (gaseous oxygen).

Elements play a crucial role in chemical reactions, where they rearrange to form new substances by making or breaking bonds.

Compound

Compounds are substances composed of two or more different elements chemically bonded together in fixed proportions. Unlike elements, which are made of only one type of atom, compounds have a defined chemical formula like H₂O, representing water.
This indicates that each molecule of water consists of two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom.

• Compounds have unique properties that differ from the elements that form them.
• They can be broken down into simpler substances through chemical reactions.
• The properties of a compound depend on the types of bonds holding the elements together.

Understanding compounds is essential, as they are the foundation of all the substances we interact with daily, from the air we breathe to the food we eat.

Mole Concept

The mole concept is a fundamental idea in chemistry that links the macroscopic world we observe to the atomic world we study.
A mole is a unit used to count particles, similar to how a dozen counts 12 items.

• One mole contains exactly 6.022 x 10²³ particles, known as Avogadro's number.
• It represents a way to express amounts of a chemical substance, making it easier to relate masses of substances and their chemical amounts.
• The mole concept is crucial for understanding stoichiometry, which involves calculating the amounts of reactants and products in a chemical reaction.

By understanding the mole concept, you can better grasp how elements combine to form compounds and how chemical reactions occur at the molecular level.