Spectrometry analysis of a sample shows that it has 2 isotopes. These are 75% chlorine-35 and 25%…

Question

Spectrometry analysis of a sample shows that it has 2 isotopes. These are 75% chlorine-35 and 25% chlorine-37. Calculate the relative atomic mass of chlorine

ScanSolve AI Tutor · Accepted Answer

To calculate the relative atomic mass of chlorine, we use the weighted average of the masses of its isotopes, taking into account their natural abundances.

Identify the isotopic masses and their percentage abundances.
- Chlorine-35 has an isotopic mass of 35 and an abundance of 75%.
- Chlorine-37 has an isotopic mass of 37 and an abundance of 25%.
Convert percentage abundances to fractional abundances.
- For Chlorine-35: $\frac{75}{100} = 0.75$
- For Chlorine-37: $\frac{25}{100} = 0.25$
Apply the formula for relative atomic mass.
The relative atomic mass is calculated as:
$\text{Relative Atomic Mass} = \sum (\text{isotopic mass} \times \text{fractional abundance})$
Substitute the values and calculate.
$\text{Relative Atomic Mass} = (35 \times 0.75) + (37 \times 0.25)$ $\text{Relative Atomic Mass} = 26.25 + 9.25$ $\text{Relative Atomic Mass} = 35.5$
The relative atomic mass of chlorine is 35.5.
$\text{35.5}$

Spectrometry analysis of a sample shows that it has 2 isotopes. These are 75% chlorine-35 and 25% chlorine-37. Calculate the relative atomic mass of chlorine

Answer

Step-by-step solution

Identify the isotopic masses and their percentage abundances.

Convert percentage abundances to fractional abundances.

Apply the formula for relative atomic mass.

Substitute the values and calculate.

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