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Stoichiometry
(The Mole and Avogadro’s Number)
 Avogadro’s Number
(What in the world is a mole?)
We scientists use this thing called a mole to measure stuff. So, what is a mole?
Strictly defined, a mole (also called Avogadro’s number) is 6.022 × 1023.

This is literally just a really big number, kind of like a dozen. For example, if I have a
dozen eggs, then I have 12 eggs. If I have one mole of eggs, then I have 6.022 × 1023
eggs (which, by the way, is a LOT of eggs).

So why do we care about such a bizarre number? Well, as it turns out, a mole is the
number of atoms in a sample that weighs that element’s atomic weight.

For example, carbon’s atomic mass on the periodic table is ~12. This means that if
you have a 12-gram sample of carbon, then you have 6.022 × 1023 carbon atoms.
Hydrogen’s atomic mass is ~1, so if you have 1 gram of H, you have 6.022 × 1023
hydrogen atoms.
 Molecular (Formula) Weights
To calculate a molecule’s entire mass, we add up the individual masses
of each of the atoms in that molecule’s formula. For example, fructose
has a molecular formula of C6H12O6. Each C weighs ~12, each H
weighs ~1, and each O weighs about 16. Thus, as a whole, fructose
weighs:

(6×12) + (12×1) + (6×16) = 180

This value (180) is fructose’s molecular weight, also called its formula
weight. The units of molecular weight are either amu (atomic mass
units) or grams/mole. The second set of units are VERY important to
know.
 Question
If you have a 150-gram sample of CrO3:

• How many moles of CrO3 do you have?

• How many oxygen atoms do you have?
• How many grams of oxygen do you have?
 Questions
Arrange the following in order of increasing number of moles of Cl.

I. 1 g of KCl (74.6 g/mol)

II. 10 g of MgCl2 (95.2 g/mol)
III. 0.1 mol of AlCl3

A. II < I < III

B. III < I < II
C. I < II < III
D. II < III < I
E. III < II < I
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Stoichiometry
(Balancing Reactions)
 Balancing Chemical Equations
Before we can really use chemical equations, we have to balance them.
We do this by adding coefficients to the left of each formula in the
equation until the total number of each type of atom is equal on both
sides.

When doing this it’s more important to know where to start when
balancing. Otherwise, you’ll end up in a loop trying to balance everything.

Try to start with an element that only shows up in one compound on both
sides of the equation. Then work your way toward other elements.
 Balancing Chemical Equations
Balance the following equations:

CO (g) + O2 (g) → CO2 (g)

CH4 (g) + Cl2 (g) → CCl4 (l) + HCl (g)

 Combustion Reactions
One last thing you should know is the general formula for combustion
reactions.

To explain, a combustion reaction is a rapid reaction in which a

hydrocarbon (CxHy) or an alcohol (CxHyOH) reacts with oxygen (O2). The
products of combustion reactants are always CO2 and H2O:

C2H2OH (s) + 3O2 (g) → 2CO2 (g) + 3H2O (g)

2C6H14 (g) + 19O2 (g) → 12CO2 (g) + 14H2O (g)

 Balancing Chemical Equations
Please balance the following equations:

NH4NO3 (s) → N2 (g) + O2 (g) + H2O (g)

Al(OH)3 (s) + H2SO4 (aq) → Al2(SO4)3 (aq) + H2O (l)
 Balancing Chemical Equations
Balance the following equations and indicate whether they are
combination, decomposition, or combustion reactions:

C3H6 (g) + O2 (g) → CO2 (g) + H2O (g)

NH4NO3 (s) → N2O (g) + H2O (g)
PbCO3 (s) → PbO (s) + CO2 (g)
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Stoichiometry
(Empirical and Molecular Formulas
and Percent Compositions)
 Molecular & Empirical Formulas
Simply put, chemical formulas that show the actual elemental symbols and numbers
of all the atoms in a molecule are called molecular formulas.

Formulas that give only the most-reduced whole number ratio of each atom are called
empirical formulas.

For example, each glucose molecule actually contains six C atoms, twelve H atoms,
and six O atoms. This means that glucose’s molecular formula is C6H12O6.

But, is it possible to divide each of those subscripts (6, 12, and 6) in a way that gives
us a formula with a smaller whole-number ratio? Absolutely! If we divide them all by 6,
then the formula becomes CH2O. This is glucose’s empirical formula. Make sense?
 Molecular & Empirical Formulas
So, why do we even talk about empirical
formulas? The major reason is that in the
lab, when
Simply we analyze
put, chemical formulasanthat
unknown
show thesample
actual elemental symbols and numbers
byallelemental
of the atoms inanalysis, the called
a molecule are machine (called
molecular formulas.
an “elemental analyzer” or “combustion
Formulas
analyzer”) thatdoesn’t
give only give
the most-reduced whole number ratio of each atom are called
us our compound’s
empirical formulas.
molecular formula.
For example, each glucose molecule actually contains six C atoms, twelve H atoms,
Instead,
and it gives
six O atoms. usmeans
This a listthat
of glucose’s
all the elements
molecular formula is C6H12O6.
present in the sample, with their
But, is it possible toWe
percentages. divide then
each of convert
those subscripts
those(6, 12, and 6) in a way that gives
us a formula with a smaller whole-number ratio? Absolutely! If we divide them all by 6,
percentages into an empirical formula, and
then the formula becomes CH2O. This is glucose’s empirical formula. Make sense?
(if needed) we later use mass spectrometry
to help convert that empirical formula into a
molecular formula.
 Percent Composition
If you’re given a molecule’s formula, you can calculate what percent of it is hydrogen,
oxygen, carbon, and so forth. For example, glucose’s molecular formula is C6H12O6.
Each carbon has an atomic mass of ~12, each hydrogen of ~1, and each oxygen of
~16. This means that the total mass or molecular weight of glucose is:

(6×12) + (12× 1) + (6×16) = 180

The carbon atoms contribute 72 (6×12) to this total molecular weight. This means
that each glucose molecule is . . .

(72 / 180)×100 = 40%

. . . Forty percent carbon. We say, then, that 40% of glucose is composed (made up)
of carbon. Thus, glucose’s percent composition is 40% carbon, 6.67% hydrogen,
and 53.33% oxygen.
 Percent Composition
Percent composition questions appear in two ways on the EXAM:

• Way 1: You are given a molecule’s formula and are asked for a specific
element’s percent.

• Way 2: You are given the mass percent of each element in a

compound and are asked to determine the compound’s formula.
 Percent Composition (Way 1)
What is the percent composition of nitrogen in morphine, whose
molecular formula is C17H19NO3?

Answer: First, calculate the total mass of C17H19NO3. Next, calculate the
mass of the nitrogen in that formula. Last, divide the mass of nitrogen by
the total mass and multiply it by 100.

Total mass of C17H19NO3: (17×12) + (19×1) + (14) + (3×16) = 285

Mass of N: 14
Percent composition of N in C17H19NO3: (14 / 285)×100 = 4.9%
 Percent Composition (Way 2)
What is the empirical formula of a compound that is 17.3% H and 82.7% C?

Answer: First, assume 100 g of total sample. By doing this, you can convert each %
into grams directly:

17.3 g of H, 82.7 g of C

Next, divide each number of grams by the element’s atomic mass:

H: 17.3 ÷ 1 = 17.3
C: 82.7÷ 12 = 6.89
 Percent Composition (Way 2)
What is the empirical formula of a compound that is 17.3% H and 82.7% C?

Next, divide the answers from the previous step by whichever number of the
two was smaller:

H: 17.3 ÷ 1 = 17.3 ÷ 6.89 = 2.5

C: 82.7÷ 12 = 6.89 ÷ 6.89 = 1

If the answers are close to whole numbers, go to the next step. If not, then multiply by
2 or 3 to change them into whole numbers:

H: 2.5 × 2 = 5
C: 1 × 2 = 2
 Percent Composition (Way 2)
What is the empirical formula of a compound that is 17.3% H and 82.7% C?

These new numbers are the subscripts of your empirical formula:

H: 5
C: 2

Empirical formula: C2H5

 Empirical to Molecular Formulas
To convert an empirical formula to a molecular formula:

• Step 1: Divide your molecular weight (which is obtained using mass

spectrometry and will be given to you in your problem) by the weight
of your empirical formula.

• Step 2: Multiply each subscript in your empirical formula by the

answer your got in Step 1. The new formula is your molecular
formula.
 Empirical to Molecular Formulas
In our prior example, we calculated an empirical formula of C2H5. If your compound’s
actual molecular weight is 58.123 amu, then what is its molecular formula?

Answer: Divide your molecular weight by the weight of your empirical formula.

Empirical formula weight: (2×12) + (5×1) = 29

Molecular weight: 58.123
Molecular ÷ Empirical = 58.123 / 29 = 2

Multiply each subscript in your empirical formula by the answer your got in Step 1:

C2H5 × 2 = C4H10

This new formula is your molecular formula.

 Questions
The empirical formula of a compound with molecules containing 12
carbon atoms, 14 hydrogen atoms, and 6 oxygen atoms is __________.

A. C12H14O6
B. C6H7O3
C. CHO
D. CH2O
E. C2H4O
 Questions
Calculate the percent composition, by mass, of carbon in the following
compounds:

Cocaine, C17H21NO4

Vancomycin, C55H75Cl2N9O24
 Questions
What is the molecular formula of each of the following compounds?

Empirical formula CH2, molar mass = 84 g/mol

Empirical formula HCO2, molar mass = 90.0 g/mol

 Questions
What is the empirical formula of a compound that contains 12.1% C,
16.2% O, and 71.7% Cl?

A. COCl
B. COCl2
C. C2OCl
D. CO2Cl
E. ClCO4
 Questions
An ore containing gold was processed so that all of the gold is converted
to AuCl3 (303 g/mol). If a 4.0 g sample of an ore produced 3.03 g of
AuCl3, what is the percentage of Au (197 g/mol) in the ore?

A. 10.0 %
B. 49.3 %
C. 75.8 %
D. 98.5 %
E. 24.6 %
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Stoichiometry
(Limiting Reactants and
Theoretical and Percent Yields)
 Product & Reactant Amounts
In real life, we can use balanced chemical equations to predict the
amounts of products formed and reactants needed in a given chemical
reaction, much like using a recipe from a cookbook. To do this, remember
BCC:

Step 1: Balance the equation (if necessary).

Step 2: Convert to moles (or millimoles).
Step 3: Use the Coefficients in the equation to transform the moles of
things you know into moles of things you don’t know.
 Questions
How many moles of C2H6 are needed to react with excess O2 to form 22
moles of CO2 in the following reaction?

C2H6 (g) + O2 (g) → CO2 (g) + H2O (g)

How many grams of C2H6 does this represent?

 Questions
How many grams of CO2 (44.01 g/mol) are produced from the complete
combustion of 0.25 mol of butane, C4H10 (58 g/mol)?

A. 11 g
B. 44 g
C. 22 g
D. 88 g
E. 15 g
 Questions
How many grams of Mg (24 g/mol) are needed to react with excess HCl
(36.5 g/mol) to obtain 0.90 mol of MgCl2 (95.2 g/mol) if the reaction has
90% yield?

Mg + 2 HCl → MgCl2 + H2

A. 22 g
B. 2.4 g
C. 24 g
D. 12 g
E. 48 g
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Stoichiometry
(Limiting Reactants and
Theoretical and Percent Yields)
 Limiting Reactants
When doing problems like the previous example, we are sometimes
asked to identify the limiting reactant. Simply stated, this is the reactant
that runs out first.

It’s often VERY important to identify the limiting reactant because the
amount of product you get depends on the amount of limiting reactant.

If a question says that a reactant is added “in excess”, it means that this
reactant is NOT the limiting reactant. In other words, the “excess”
reactant is NOT the limiting reactant. In such problems, the other
reactant (the non-“excess” reactant) is the limiting reactant.
 excess (or “xs”) = NOT the limiting reactant

Balance the chemical reaction

Problems that say
“excess” in them
Convert everything to moles
Use Coefficients

A + B→C

“xs” limiting
How to Identify the Limiting Reactant
To identify the limiting reactant (for questions that do NOT say “excess”
in them) just remember BCDS:

Balance the chemical reaction

Convert everything to moles
Problems that do NOT say
“excess” in them Divide: moles / coefficients
Smallest one wins!
 Questions
If you react 6 grams of C2H6 (M.W. = 30 g/mol) with 9.6 grams of O2
(M.W. = 32 g/mol), which reactant will run out first?

C2H6 (g) + O2 (g) → CO2 (g) + H2O (g)

Under these conditions, how many grams of H2O will this reaction
produce?
 Questions
Hydrogen gas reacts with oxygen gas to form
water.

H2 + O2 → H2O

When the molecules in the diagram to the right

react to form the maximum amount of water, what
is the limiting reactant and how many molecules of
water can be formed?

A. O2 is limiting and 8 molecules of water will be formed

B. O2 is limiting and 4 molecules of water will be formed
C. H2 is limiting and 6 molecules of water will be formed
D. H2 is limiting and 3 molecules of water will be formed
E. H2 is limiting and 12 molecules of water will be formed
 amount of product given in the problem

Actual yield
% yield =
Theoretical yield

amount of product calculated from your limiting reactant

 excess (or “xs”) = NOT the limiting reactant

Balance the chemical reaction

Problems that say
“excess” in them
Convert everything to moles
Use Coefficients

A + B→C

“xs” limiting
 Balance the chemical reaction
Convert everything to moles
Problems that do NOT say
“excess” in them Divide: moles / coefficients
Smallest one wins!
 Questions
Ammonia is a major component of household cleaner. It is synthesized industrially via
the Haber-Bosch process according to the reaction:

N2 + 3 H2 → 2 NH3

If a mixture of 14 g of N2 and 10 g of H2 produced 0.40 moles of ammonia, what is the

percent yield of the reaction?

A. 24 %
B. 20 %
C. 80 %
D. 40 %
E. 60 %
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Stoichiometry
(Limiting Reactants and
Theoretical and Percent Yields)
 Theoretical and Percent Yields
The theoretical yield is the amount of product you
should get in a given reaction, if everything goes
perfectly. This really is the amount of product that you
would calculatedly obtain.

So, to calculate a theoretical yield, just identify the

limiting reactant and then calculate—from that reactant—
the amount of product you would form. That’s it!
 Theoretical and Percent Yields
Unfortunately, in real life, you rarely get the actual amount of product that
you should calculatedly obtain. The amount of product that you actually
get when you run a reaction is called the actual yield.

Chemists often report something called a percent yield as a measure of

how efficient a reaction is. Simply defined:

actual
% yield = × 100
theoretical
 Theoretical and Percent Yields
Unfortunately, in real life, you rarely get the actual amount of product that
you should calculatedly obtain. The amount of product that you actually
get when you run a reaction is called the actual yield.

Chemists often report something called a percent yield as a measure of

how efficient a reaction is. I often define it as this:

what you actually got

% yield = × 100
what you would have gotten
if everything went perfectly
 Questions
Suppose you react 81 grams of Al (atomic mass = 27 g/mol) with 213 grams of Cl2
(M.W. = 71 g/mol), and you obtain 133.5 grams of AlCl3, according to the following
equation:

Al (s) + Cl2 (g) → AlCl3 (s)

Please calculate:

• The limiting reactant

• The theoretical yield
• The percent yield
• How many grams of the excess reagent are left over, once the reaction is
completed?
 Questions
Iron (Fe, 55.8 g/mol) is an abundant element on Earth. An iron ore called hematite
contains iron in the form of Fe2O3 (160 g/mol). To extract the iron from hematite, the
Fe2O3 is reacted with carbon monoxide according to the reaction:

Fe2O3 + 3 CO → 2 Fe + 3 CO2

How much hematite ore, which contains 64% Fe2O3 by mass, is required to produce
0.20 mol of elemental iron?

A. 17.4 g
B. 34.9 g
C. 8.72 g
D. 25.0 g
E. 50.0 g
 Questions
Pentane is a component of gasoline. How many liters of air, which
contains 20% O2 by volume, is required to completely combust 2.0 L of
pentane?

C5H12 (g) + 8 O2 (g) → 5 CO2 (g) + 6 H2O (g)

A. 20 L
B. 40 L
C. 60 L
D. 80 L
E. 100 L
 Questions
A 6.55-gram sample of an unknown element Q reacts with excess
fluorine gas to form 10.35 grams of QF4. The unknown element is most
likely which of the following?

A. P
B. S
C. Xe
D. C
E. Te