Question

An unknown compound has the following chemical formula: Zn(CN)x where x stands for a whole number. Measurements also show that a certain sample of the unknown compound contains 9.7 mol of nitrogen and 4.9 mol of zinc. Write the complete chemical formula for the unknown compound.

Answer 1

Answer:

$Zn(CN)_2$

Explanation:

According to the law of definite proportions, particles in a compound combine by a defined stoichiometric ratio. This ratio is also calculated in terms of moles.

In order to find the ratio between the particles in a compound, we need to find the molar ratio of each species.

Notice that the ratio between the number of moles of zinc to the number of moles of nitrogen is:

$\frac{n_{Zn}}{n_N}} = \frac{9.7 mol}{4.9 mol} = \frac{1}{2}$

This means if we are given 1 zinc ion, we expect to have a total of 2 nitrogen atoms. Therefore, x = 2.