How many Sulfur atoms are in 0.42 mol S?

1 Answer
anor277
Nov 9, 2015

If I have half a dozen sulfur atoms; clearly I have 6 sulfur atoms. If I have 0.42 mol of sulfur there are 0.42 xx N_A sulfur atoms, where N_A = Avogadro's number.

Explanation:

The mole is simply a number, admittedly a very large number: N_A = 6.022 xx 10^(23). So, in fact I have 0.42 xx N_A sulfur atoms.

To expand, Avogadro's number, N_A, is simply the link between the micro world of atoms and molecules, with the macro world of grams and kilograms. If I have a mass of 32.06 g of sulfur, which I can easily weigh out on a bench, I know, to a very good approximation, that I have 6.022 xx 10^(23) sulfur atoms (these may be individual atoms or they may be part of S_8 rings - the number of sulfur atoms is determined directly!)

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