How many oxygens are there in Mg_3(PO_4)_2?

1 Answer
anor277
Feb 27, 2016

In the one formula unit of Mg_3(PO_4)_2 there are 8 individual oxygen atoms.

Explanation:

All I have done is simply expand the formula using the multiplier on the brackets. One formula unit of Mg_3(PO_4)_2 contains 3 "magnesium atoms", 2 "phosphorus atoms", and 3 "magnesium atoms".

Can you give the atom number breakdown of the salt magnesium biphosphate, Mg(HPO_4)? Why is this a 1:1 salt and not 3:2?

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