Combustion analysis of 45.62 mg of toluene, a commonly used solvent, gives 35.67 mg of H2 O and

step 1 Start by converting mass of water and mass of carbon dioxide into moles of hydrogen and carbon.

Combustion analysis of 45.62 mg of toluene, a commonly used...

Combustion analysis of 45.62 $\mathrm{mg}$ of toluene, a commonly used solvent, gives 35.67 $\mathrm{mg}$ of $\mathrm{H}_{2} \mathrm{O}$ and 152.5 $\mathrm{mg}$ of $\mathrm{CO}_{2}$ What is the empirical formula of toluene?

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Key Concepts

Combustion Analysis

Combustion analysis is a technique used to determine the composition of carbon and hydrogen in an organic compound. By burning the compound completely in oxygen, the carbon converts to CO2 and the hydrogen to H2O. Measuring the masses of these combustion products enables the calculation of the moles of carbon and hydrogen originally present in the unknown compound.

Empirical Formula Determination

The empirical formula of a compound represents the simplest whole-number ratio of the elements present. Once the moles of each element are determined from the combustion analysis, these values are used to calculate the simplest ratio, which forms the empirical formula.

Mole Conversion and Ratio Analysis

Converting the masses of the combustion products to moles using their respective molar masses is a crucial step. This mole calculation facilitates the comparison of the amounts of carbon and hydrogen, allowing for the determination of the simplest whole-number ratio between them, thereby yielding the empirical formula.

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