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  • Molecular Formula Calculation from Empirical Formula and Mass
    To determine the molecular formula, we need to know the molar mass of the compound. The empirical formula CH suggests that the compound is composed of carbon and hydrogen atoms in a 1:1 ratio. The molar mass of CH is 13 g/mol (12 g/mol for carbon + 1 g/mol for hydrogen). Since the actual mass of the compound is 26 grams, the molecular formula must be a multiple of the empirical formula.

    To find the multiple, we divide the actual mass by the molar mass of the empirical formula:

    $$\frac{Actual \space Mass}{Molar \space Mass \space of \space Empirical \space Formula}=\frac{26g}{13 g/mol}=2$$

    This means that the molecular formula must be a dimer of the empirical formula, with twice the number of atoms. Therefore, the molecular formula is C2H2.

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