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Q. What is molecular mass and how to find molecular mass?
Answer:- The molecular mass is the entire sum of the masses of the atoms or components in the molecule.
The sum of the atomic masses of all atoms in a molecule, based on a scale in which the atomic masses of hydrogen, carbon, nitrogen, and oxygen are 1, 12, 14, and 16, respectively. For example, the molecular mass of water, which has two atoms of hydrogen and one atom of oxygen, is 18 (i.e., 2 + 16). Also called molecular weight.
How do you calculate molecular mass?
We may calculate the molecular mass of a molecule by using the following process:
Determine the compound’s or molecule’s formula.
Determine the number of atoms in each element of the compound or molecule using the formula.
Multiply each element’s atomic weight by the number of atoms in that particular element.
Carry out the same procedure for all of the constituents in the molecule or complex.
Add all of the values from the previous step together.
By multiplying the molecular mass of the substance by the unit of grams/mole, the molecular mass of the material may be computed.
The Problem of Molecular Mass
Table sugar (sucrose) has the chemical formula C12H22O11. Calculate its molecular mass.
Solution
Add the atomic masses of all the atoms in the molecule to get the molecular mass. Using the mass given in the Periodic Table, calculate the atomic mass of each element. To calculate the molecular mass, multiply the subscript (number of atoms) by the atomic mass of that element, then add the masses of all the elements in the molecule. Multiply the subscript 12 times the atomic mass of carbon, for example (C). If you don’t already know the symbols for the elements, it’s a good idea to learn them.
When the atomic masses are rounded to four significant figures, the result is:
molecular mass C12H22O11 = 12(mass of C) + 22(mass of H) + 11(mass of O)
molecular mass C12H22O11 = 12(12.01) + 22(1.008) + 11(16.00)
molecular mass C12H22O11 = 342.30
