What is the empirical formula and empirical mass of this aromatic compound?
To find the empirical formula, divide the percent mass of each element by its atomic weight to get the ratio of atoms of each element. The atomic weight of carbon is 12, and that of hydrogen is 1. Divide each percent by the atomic weight and we get 7.68 to 7.75 which is very close to a 1 to 1 ratio. so the empirical formula is C1H1 or simply CH. The molecular weight (or mass) is 78.1 and the molecular weight of each CH group is 13, so 78 divided by 13 is 6. Then we have six CH groups, and so the molecular formula is C6H6 (or benzene). Hope this answers your question.
