Input interpretation
mercuric chloride | relative molecular mass
Result
Find the relative molecular mass, M_r, for mercuric chloride: M_r = sum _iN_im_i/m_u Plan: • Write the chemical formula and gather atomic masses from the periodic table. • Determine values for N_i and m_i using these items. • Finally, compute the mass. Write the chemical formula: HgCl_2 Use the chemical formula to count the number of atoms, N_i, for each element: | N_i Cl (chlorine) | 2 Hg (mercury) | 1 Look up the atomic mass, m_i, in unified atomic mass units, u, for each element in the periodic table. Since m_i is divided by the atomic mass constant, m_u, the result is a unitless relative atomic mass: | N_i | m_i/m_u Cl (chlorine) | 2 | 35.45 Hg (mercury) | 1 | 200.592 Multiply N_i by m_i/m_u to compute the relative mass for each element. Then sum those values to compute the relative molecular mass, M_r: Answer: | | | N_i | m_i/m_u | relative mass Cl (chlorine) | 2 | 35.45 | 2 × 35.45 = 70.90 Hg (mercury) | 1 | 200.592 | 1 × 200.592 = 200.592 M_r = 70.90 + 200.592 = 271.49
Comparisons
≈ 0.38 × relative molecular mass of fullerene ( ≈ 721 )
≈ 1.4 × relative molecular mass of caffeine ( ≈ 194 )
≈ 4.6 × relative molecular mass of sodium chloride ( ≈ 58 )
Corresponding quantities
Molar mass M from M = M_uM_r: | 271 g/mol (grams per mole)
Molecular mass m from m = M_rM_u/N_A: | 4.5×10^-22 grams | 4.5×10^-25 kg (kilograms)