How do you get the Molecular Formula from Percent Composition?
1 Answer
The simple answer is that you cannot do so. Elemental analysis does not lead to the molecular formula.
Explanation:
Get an organic sample, and combust it in a furnace, you can shunt the carbon dioxide and water gases to a gas chromatograph, and measure these quantities in relation to a standard. Percentage compositions with respect to
We use these percentages to calculate an EMPIRICAL FORMULA, which is the simplest whole number ratio that defines constituent atoms in a species. If we take simple organic (molecular) formula of
For larger organic molecules, say sugar,
There should be many examples on these boards of specific empirical/molecular formula calculations.