1. Calculate the molar mass of each element:
- Silver (Ag): Molar mass = 107.87 g/mol
- Nitrogen (N): Molar mass = 14.01 g/mol
- Oxygen (O): Molar mass = 16.00 g/mol
2. Calculate the moles of each element:
- Moles of Ag = 63.50 g / 107.87 g/mol = 0.588 moles
- Moles of N = 8.25 g / 14.01 g/mol = 0.589 moles
- Moles of O = 28.25 g / 16.00 g/mol = 1.766 moles
3. Determine the relative proportions of each element:
- Ag: 0.588 moles / 1.766 moles = 0.333
- N: 0.589 moles / 1.766 moles = 0.334
- O: 1.766 moles / 1.766 moles = 1
4. Simplify the relative proportions to obtain whole numbers:
- Ag: 0.333 ≈ 1
- N: 0.334 ≈ 1
- O: 1
5. The empirical formula of the compound is AgNO.
6. Calculate the empirical formula mass:
Empirical formula mass (AgNO) = (1 x 107.87 g/mol) + (1 x 14.01 g/mol) + (1 x 16.00 g/mol) = 169.88 g/mol
The calculated empirical formula mass is very close to the given total molar mass of 169.91 g, suggesting that the empirical formula is correct.
