To
determine the empirical formula of the compound given, we need to determine the ratio of each element in the compound. To do that we assume to have 100 grams sample
of the compound with the given composition. Then, we calculate for the number
of moles of each element. We do as follows:
mass moles
C 56.79 4.73
H 6.56 6.50
O 28.37 1.77
N 8.28 0.59
Dividing the number of moles of each element with
the smallest value, we will have the empirical formula:
moles ratio
C 4.73 / 0.59 8
H 6.50 / 0.59 11
O 1.77 / 0.59 3
N 0.59 / 0.59 1
The empirical formula would be C8H11O3N.
