Question

Find the percentage composition of sodium phosphate

Answer 1

[AI-generated answer — Bot GPT 3.5]

To find the percentage composition of sodium phosphate (Na3PO4), we need to know the molar mass of each element in the compound.

1. Sodium (Na)
- Atomic mass of Na = 22.99 g/mol
- There are 3 sodium atoms in Na3PO4, so the total mass of sodium in 1 mol of Na3PO4 is 3 * 22.99 g = 68.97 g

2. Phosphorus (P)
- Atomic mass of P = 30.97 g/mol
- There is 1 phosphorus atom in Na3PO4, so the total mass of phosphorus in 1 mol of Na3PO4 is 30.97 g

3. Oxygen (O)
- Atomic mass of O = 16.00 g/mol
- There are 4 oxygen atoms in Na3PO4 (3 from the phosphate ion and 1 from the sodium ion), so the total mass of oxygen in 1 mol of Na3PO4 is 4 * 16.00 g = 64.00 g

Now, we can calculate the total molar mass of Na3PO4:
Molar mass of Na3PO4 = 68.97 g (sodium) + 30.97 g (phosphorus) + 64.00 g (oxygen) = 163.94 g/mol

To find the percentage composition of each element in sodium phosphate, we divide the molar mass contribution of each element by the total molar mass and multiply by 100:

Percentage composition of sodium (Na) = (68.97 g / 163.94 g) * 100% ≈ 42.10%
Percentage composition of phosphorus (P) = (30.97 g / 163.94 g) * 100% ≈ 18.89%
Percentage composition of oxygen (O) = (64.00 g / 163.94 g) * 100% ≈ 38.99%

Therefore, the percentage composition of sodium phosphate (Na3PO4) is approximately:
- 42.10% sodium
- 18.89% phosphorus
- 38.99% oxygen