Masses of Particles: Unit 1 Chemistry Chapter 4 Notes Relative Isotopic Mass

Unit 1 Chemistry
Chapter 4 notes
Masses of Particles
Relative Isotopic Mass
Chemists do a lot of calculations that involve using the mass of atoms. The mass of an
atom is extremely small; so to avoid using such figures a standard reference is used.
C
That is the carbon - 12 isotope 12
was assigned a mass of 12 and the mass of
6
all other isotopes were then obtained relative to this.
The relative isotopic mass (RIM) of an isotope is the mass of that isotope relative to
the mass of the carbon-12 isotope taken as 12 exactly.
There are two different isotopes of chlorine. These isotopes have different masses
because they have different number of neutrons. Using the carbon-12 isotope as a
standard, the accurate RIM of the two isotopes are experimentally determined to be
34.969 and 36.966. Naturally occurring chlorine is made up of 75.80% of the lighter
isotope and 24.20% of the heavier isotope. This composition is virtually the same no
matter what source of the chlorine. Most elements such as chlorine are a mixture of
isotopes (see table 4.2 p 55)
Experimental Determination of Relative Isotopic Masses.

The Relative Isotopic Masses of elements can be obtained using an instrument called a
mass spectrometer. This instrument separates the individual isotopes in a sample of the
element being measured and then determines the mass of each isotope relative to the
carbon - 12 isotope and the relative abundance of each isotope. This information
presented graphically is called a mass spectrum. The mass spectrum has a number of
important features
The number of peaks indicates the number of isotopes.
The position of each peak on the horizontal axis indicates the relative isotopic mass
of each isotope.
The height of the peaks corresponds to the relative abundance of each isotope.
1.
Chlorine has two isotopes, one with an

isotopic mass of about 35 and the other
with an isotopic mass of 37
2. If the vertical axis is not labelled as
percentage abundance, measure the
height of both peaks and then divide
the height of each individual peak by
the total peak heights.
Relative Atomic Mass
Since elements consists of isotopes, when performing chemical calculations it is useful

to know the average of the relative isotopic masses. The average that is used is a
weighted average as it takes into account the percentage abundance of each isotope.
The average is known as the relative atomic mass as is given the symbol RAM or Ar
R.A.M = (relative abundance) 1 (R.I.M) 1 + (relative abundance) 2 (R.I.M) 2

%
%
Definition: The relative atomic mass of an element is the weighted average of the relative
isotopic masses of that element on the carbon - 12 scale
Relative Molecular Mass (Mr)
The Relative Molecular Mass (Mr) of a compound is the mass of one molecule of that
substance relative to the mass of the carbon-12 isotope which is 12 exactly. The relative
molecular mass of a compound is calculated by taking the sum of the relative atomic
masses of the elements in the molecular formula.
For non molecular compounds, the term relative formula mass is used. Relative formula
mass, like relative molecular mass is calculated by taking the sum of the relative atomic
masses of the elements in the formula.
NB Relative Molecular Mass and Relative Formula Mass do not have units.
The Mole.
When chemists work with elements and compounds, they cannot deal with quantities as
small as individual atoms, ions or molecules. So they use a convenient quantity of atoms,
ions or molecules- one they can weigh out and work with in a laboratory. The accepted
convenient quantity for chemists when working with chemicals is the mole and as can be
seen from the definition is based on the carbon-12 isotope.
Definition: The mole is the amount of substance that contains as many
elementary particles (atoms, ions or molecules) as there are atoms in exactly 12
ofathe
carbon -contains
12 isotope.
Onegrams
mole of
substance
6.023 1023 particles. This number is called
Avogadro's constant and is given the symbol NA
Eg.
Eg.
Eg.
Eg.
one mole of carbon atoms contains 6.023 1023 atoms

one mole of water molecules contain 6.023 1023 molecules.
two moles of magnesium contains 6.023 1023 2 = 12.046 1023 atoms
half a mole of oxygen molecules contains 6.023 1023 2 = 3.0115 1023 molecules
Note that:
The symbol for amount of substance is n
The unit of measurement for amount of substance is mol
So n(glucose) = 2 is read as the amount of glucose molecules in the sample is 2
moles
Calculations involving the Mole.
Equation 1.
Number of particles in a given substance = amount of substance (mole) 6.023 1023
Equation 2
Number of mole of a substance = number of particles in a substance 6.023 X 1023
This can be simplified:

Divide by 6.023 1023
Number of particles
Moles
Multiply by 6.023 1023
Molar Mass
One mole of substance is equivalent to the relative atomic mass of an element or relative
molecular mass / relative formula mass of a compound expressed in grams.
This is called the molar mass, is given the symbol M and has the units g/mol.
Substance
Carbon
Molar mass
(g/mol)
12.011
Mass (grams)
12.011
Oxygen
16
Nitrogen
Water
18
Methane
(CH4)
Carbon Dioxide
(CO2)
Ammonia
(NH3)
Number of
mole
1
Number of
particles
6.023 1023
atoms
0.5
12.046 1023
molecules
51
There is a relationship which exists between the molar mass (M), the mass (in grams)
and the number of moles of a substance.
Number of mol, = mass of the substance
Molar mass of a substance
n=
m
M
M=
m= nM
m
n
Formulas of compounds
Calculating the Percentage Composition of a Compound.
The composition of a compound is often expressed in terms of its percentage

composition by mass. This means the percentage of the total mass of the compound
contributed by each element. The percentage composition of a compound is constant and
does not depend on the mass.
eg. The percentage of Na in 1 gram of NaCl would be the same as the percentage of Na
in 1 kg of NaCl
Empirical Formulas
The empirical formula of a substance is the simplest whole number ratio of atoms
present in the substance.
Compound
Empirical formula
Whole number ratio of

elements in compound
H:O = 2:1
C : O = 1 : 2
Ca : C : O = 1 : 1 : 3
C : H = 2 : 5
Water
H2O
Carbon dioxide
CO2
Calcium carbonate
CaCO3
Butane (C4H10)
C2H5
To determine the empirical formula of a substance
the ratio by mass of each of the atoms must be known. This can be expressed in
grams or as a percentage.
This ratio is then converted to a ratio by number of atoms by calculating the
number of mole of each element.
Lastly the atom ratio is converted to a whole number atom ratio by dividing by
the smallest number of moles.

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Masses of Particles: Unit 1 Chemistry Chapter 4 Notes Relative Isotopic Mass

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Unit 1 Chemistry

Experimental Determination of Relative Isotopic Masses.

Chlorine has two isotopes, one with an

Relative Atomic Mass

Since elements consists of isotopes, when performing chemical calculations it is useful

R.A.M = (relative abundance) 1 (R.I.M) 1 + (relative abundance) 2 (R.I.M) 2

Relative Molecular Mass (Mr)

one mole of carbon atoms contains 6.023 1023 atoms

Calculations involving the Mole.

This can be simplified:

The composition of a compound is often expressed in terms of its percentage

Whole number ratio of

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