Answer: At some point in your chemistry education, you may have been introduced to the song “The Elements in which Tom Lehrer does a rapid
fire musical rendition of all the elements' names. Like me, you may even have been offered the opportunity to memorize this song for extra credit. If so, it’s possible that you still remember the names of all the elements, which is an impressive feat—not to mention a fun trick to pull out at parties.
Explanation:
Percentage Yield = (Actual Yield ÷ Theoretical Yield) × 100
The Actual Yield is given in the question as 21.2 g of NaCl. However, in order to find the theoretical yield, you have to write a balanced equation and use the mole ratio to calculate the mass of NaCl that would be produced.
Balanced Equation: CuCl + NaNO₃ → NaCl + CuNO₃
Moles of CuCl = Mass of CuCl ÷ Molar Mass of CuCl
= 31.0 g ÷ (63.5 + 35.5)g/mol
= 0.31 mol
the mole ratio of CuCl to NaCl is 1 : 1,
∴ if moles of CuCl = 0.31 mol,
then moles of NaCl = 0.31 mol
Now, Mass of NaCl = Moles of NaCl × Molar Mass of NaCl
= 0.31 mol × (23 + 35.5) g/mol
= 18.32 g
⇒ the THEORETICAL Yield of NaCl, in this case, is 18.32 g.
Now, since Percentage Yield = (Actual Yield ÷ Theoretical Yield) × 100
⇒ Percentage Yield of NaCl = (21.2g ÷ 18.32g) × 100
= 115.7 %
NOTE: Typically, the percentage yield of a reaction is less than 100%, however in a case where the mass of the substance is weighed with impurities, then that mass may be in excess of 100% as seen here.
M₁=50 g
m₀=60 g
w=100m₁/m₀
w=100*50/60=83.3%
