The Mole
In chemistry the mass of single atoms is far too small to be of practical use. However, masses
must be used in calculations, hence mass based on Relative Atomic, Molecular and Formula
masses are used.
Consider the elements aluminium and carbon:
Relative atomic mass of Aluminium 27
=
Relative Atomic Mass of Carbon 12
The mass of 1atom of aluminium 27
i.e. =
The mass of 1 atom of carbon 12
The mass of 2 atoms of aluminium 2× 27 27
therefore, = =
The mass of 2 atoms of carbon 2× 12 12
The mass of 10 atoms of aluminium 10× 27 27
and, = =
The mass of 10 atoms of carbon 10 ×12 12
The mass of N atoms of aluminium N × 27 27
therefore, = =
The mass of N atoms of carbon N ×12 12
Whenever the number of aluminium and carbon atoms is the same the ratio of the mass of
27
aluminium to the mass of carbon will be .
12
Therefore, if we take 27 g of aluminium and 12 g of carbon, each sample must contain the same
number of atoms.
Similarly, if we take 1 g of hydrogen or 14 g of nitrogen, we must have the same number of atoms
in each sample as there are atoms of carbon in a 12 g sample of carbon.
That is, whenever we take a sample of an element which has a mass equal to its Relative Atomic
Mass expressed in grams we have the same number of atoms in that sample as there are atoms of
carbon in a 12 g sample of carbon.
A very large number of atoms contained in such a sample is called AVOGADRO’S NUMBER.
AVOGADRO’S NUMBER = 6.02 x 10 23 (approximately)
Similarly, it can be shown that Avogadro’s Number of molecules or formula units has a mass which
is equal to its Molecular or Formula mass expressed in grams.
AVOGADRO’S NUMBER (6.02 x 10 23) of particles of a substance is known as a MOLE of that
substance.
There are two acceptable definitions of the MOLE:
A MOLE of a substance is that quantity of that substance which contains AVOGADRO’S
NUMBER (6.02 x 1023) of constituent particles.
A MOLE of a substance is that quantity of that substance which has a mass equal to its
Relative Atomic, Molecular or Formula mass expressed in grams.
The Mole
CALCULATIONS – MOLES AND PARTICLES
The number of particles that make up one mole of a substance is 6.02 x 10 23. Hence if we wish to
convert the number of particles to moles we can use the following relationship.
N
n=
6.02× 1023
where, n = moles of particles and N = number of particles.
N = n x 6.02 x 10 23
EXAMPLES
1. How many moles of carbon dioxide molecules are there in 3.612 x 10 24 molecules of this
substance?
N 3.612×10 24
n (CO2) = = = 6 mol of CO2 molecules
6.02× 1023 6.02× 1023
NOTE: The short abbreviation for mole = mol
2. How many atoms of sodium are there in 4.0 moles of this substance?
N (Na) = n x 6.02 x 10 23 = 4.0 x 6.02 x 10 23 = 2.408 x 10 24 atoms of sodium
3. How many atoms of (a) nitrogen and (b) hydrogen are there in 3.0 moles of ammonia
(NH3) molecules?
3.0 mol of NH3 molecules contain – 3.0 mol of N atoms and 9.0 mol of H atoms
(a) N (N atoms) = n x 6.02 x 10 23 = 3.0 x 6.02 x 10 23 = 18.06 x 10 23 atoms of nitrogen
(b) N (H atoms) = n x 6.02 x 10 23 = 9.0 x 6.02 x 10 23 = 54.18 x 10 23 atoms of hydrogen
The Mole
4. Calculate the number of (a) Mg 2+ ions, (b) NO3 – ions and (c) oxygen atoms contained in
5.0 mol of magnesium nitrate (Mg(NO3)2).
5.0 mol of Mg(NO3)2 contains 5 mole of Mg 2+ ions, 10.0 mol of NO3 – ions and 30.0 mol of oxygen
atoms.
(a) N(Mg2+) = n x 6.02 x 10 23 = 5 x 6.02 x 10 23 = 30.1 x 10 23 Mg 2+ ions
(b) N(NO3 – ions) = n x 6.02 x 10 23 = 10 x 6.02 x 10 23 = 60.2 x 10 23 NO3 – ions
(c) N(O atoms) = n x 6.02 x 10 23 = 30 x 6.02 x 10 23 = 1.806 x 10 25 O atoms
QUESTIONS
N
1. Calculate the number of moles of (use n = for these)
6.02× 1023
(a) calcium (Ca) atoms in 6.02 x 10 23 atoms of calcium.
1 mol
(b) zinc (Zn) atoms in 2.408 x 10 24 atoms of zinc
4 mol
(c) water (H2O) molecules in 3.01 x 10 24 molecules of water
5 mol
(d) hydrogen (H2) molecules in 1.204 x 10 25 molecules of hydrogen
20 mol
2. Calculate the number of (use N = n x 6.02 x 1023):
(a) silver (Ag) atoms in 0.25 moles of silver
1.505 x 1023
(b) lead (Pb) atoms in 2.0 moles of lead
1.204 x 1024
(c) carbon monoxide (CO) molecules in 0.05 mole of carbon monoxide
3.01 x 1022
(d) ammonia (NH3) molecules in 20 moles of ammonia gas.
1.204 x 1025
The Mole
3. Calculate the number of:
(a) nitrogen molecules in 2.5 moles of nitrogen gas (N2)
1.505 x 1024
(b) nitrogen atoms in 2.5 moles of nitrogen gas (N2)
3.01 x 1024
(c) hydrogen atoms in 0.40 moles of ethanoic acid (CH3COOH)
9.632 x 1023
(d) all atoms in 6.25 moles of sulfuric acid (H2SO4)
2.63 x 1025
4. It is found that 24.0 g of carbon contains exactly the same number of atoms as 46.0 g of sodium.
From this information determine:
(a) which atoms (carbon or sodium) are heavier
sodium
(b) by what factor
1.9
5. Which of the following contains the greatest number of atoms?
2 moles of hydrogen gas (H2) OR 6 moles of zinc metal (Zn) OR 2 moles of ammonia gas (NH 3)
OR 1 mole of ammonium chloride (NH4Cl)
2 moles of ammonia gas
6. Samantha wants enough one-dollar coins to become a billionaire. How many moles of dollar
coins will she need?
1.66 x 10-15
7. Determine the number of molecules of benzene (C6H6) in 2.5 moles of benzene.
1.505 x 1024
8. Determine the number of molecules of chorine in 0.1 moles of chlorine (Cl2) gas.
6.02 x 1022
The Mole
9. Calculate the number of moles of water molecules in 602 x 10 23 molecules of water (H2O)
100 moles
10. Determine the number of atoms of carbon in 2 moles of carbon atoms.
1.204 x 1024
MOLAR MASS (M)
The mass of one mole of a substance is called its MOLAR MASS. This mass is simply the relative
atomic mass (Ar), the relative molecular mass (Mr) and the relative formula mass (Mr) expressed in
grams.
Ar (Na) = 23, therefore M(Na) = 23 g mol – 1
Mr (CO2) = 44, therefore M(CO2) = 44 g mol – 1
Mr (NaCl) = 58.5, therefore M(NaCl) = 58.5 g mol – 1
CALCULATING MOLAR MASS
Molar mass can be calculated in the same way we calculated relative atomic, molecular and
formula mass. Simply add the individual masses of the atoms in the formula.
EXAMPLE
What is the molar mass (M) for calcium carbonate?
Formula = CaCO3
Elements in formula Ca C O
Mass of each 40.1 12 16
elements
Molar mass (M) = 40.1 + 12.0 + (3 x 16.0) = 100.1 g mol – 1
M(CaCO3) = (40.1) + (12.0) + (3 x 16.0) = 100.1 g mol – 1
Questions
Complete the following (the first has been done for you):
11. (a) M (SO2) = (32.1) + (2 x 16.0) = 64.1 g mol – 1
(b) M (NaCl) = 58.5 g
(c) M (H2O) = 18 g
(d) M (ZnCl2) = 136.4 g
(e) M (Al2O3) = 102 g
The Mole
Calculate the molar mass for the following compounds (the first has been done for you):
12. (a) calcium chloride – M (CaCl2) = 40.1 + (2 x 35.5) = 111.1 g mol – 1
(b) zinc sulfate – M (ZnSO4) = 161.5 g
(c) lead (IV) oxide – M (PbO) = 223.2 g
(d) iron (III) chloride – M (FeCl3) = 162.4 g
(e) tetraphosphorous decaoxide – M (P4O10) = 284 g
13. Determine the molar mass of:
(a) Sodium: M (Na) = 23 g
(b) Sodium chloride: M (NaCl) = 58.5 g
(c) Nitrogen gas: M (N2) = 28 g
(d) Sulfur dioxide: M (SO2) = 64.1 g
(e) Sodium hydroxide: M (NaOH) = 40 g
(f) Zinc carbonate: M (ZnCO3) = 125.4 g
(g) Lead (II) oxide: M (PbO) = 223.2 g
(h) Magnesium chloride: M (MgCl2) = 95.3 g
(i) Aluminium sulfate: M (Al2(SO4)3) = 342.3 g
(j) Magnesium hydrogencarbonate: M (Mg(HCO3)2) = 146.3 g
(k) Sodium carbonate–10–water: M (Na2CO3.10 H2O) = 286 g
14. Explain the difference between relative molecular mass (Mr) and molar mass (M).
Relative molecular mass is the mass of a molecule in terms of 1/12 of the carbon-12 atom. Molar
mass is the mass of a molecule in the terms of a mole.
15. In researching two elements (X and Y) Isaac found that the A r for X was 14.0 and the A r for Y
was 19.0. Use this information to determine the molar mass of a compound made up of one atom
of X and three atoms of Y.
71 g
The Mole
THE MOLE PART 1 ANSWERS
1. (a) 1 mole (b) 4 mole (c) 5 mole (d) 20 mole
2. (a) 1.505 x 1023 atoms (b) 12.04 x 1023 atoms (c) 3.01 x 1022 molecules
(d) 1.204 x 1025 molecules
3. (a) 15.05 x 1023 molecules (b) 30.1 x 1023 atoms (c) 9.623 x 1023 atoms
(d) 2.63 x 1025 atoms
4. (a) Na (b) 1.9
5. 2 moles of ammonia gas
6. 1.66 x 10 – 15 moles of dollar coins
7. 15.05 x 1023 molecules of benzene
8. 6.02 x 1022 molecules of chlorine
9. 100 moles of water
10. 12.04 x 1023 atoms of carbon
11. (a) 64.1 g (b) 58.5 g (c) 18 g (d) 136.4 g (e) 102 g
12. (b) ZnSO4 (161.5 g)
(c) PbO (223.2 g)
(d) FeCl3 (162.3 g)
(e) P4O10 (284 g)
13. (a) Na (23 g), (b) NaCl (58.5 g), (c) N2 (28 g), (d) SO2 (64.1 g), (e) NaOH (40 g)
(f) ZnCO3 (125.4 g), (g) PbO (223.2 g), (h) MgCl2 (95.3 g), (i) Al2(SO4)3 (342.3 g)
(j) Mg(HCO3)2 (146.3 g) (k) Na2CO3.10H2O (286 g)
The Mole
14. Molar mass is the mass of one mole of a substance in grams.
Relative molecular mass is the sum of all the relative atomic masses of the atoms in the molecule.
It has no units.
15. 71 g
