A certain protein was found to have 0.855% zinc by mass. Determine the minimum molecular mass of the protein.
How do I go about solving this?
7642.10
Zn has an atomic mass number of 65.34
65.34=.00855 X
solve for X
To solve this problem, we can use the concept of molar mass and the percentage composition by mass of zinc.
Step 1: Determine the molar mass of zinc (Zn)
The molar mass of zinc can be obtained from the periodic table. The molar mass of Zn is approximately 65.38 g/mol.
Step 2: Calculate the mass of zinc in the protein
The percent composition by mass of zinc in the protein is given as 0.855%. This means that in every 100 g of the protein, there are 0.855 g of zinc.
Step 3: Convert mass of zinc to moles
To convert the mass of zinc to moles, we divide the mass of zinc by its molar mass:
0.855 g Zn × (1 mol Zn / 65.38 g Zn) = 0.0131 mol Zn
Step 4: Determine the minimum molecular mass of the protein
The minimum molecular mass of the protein can be calculated by dividing the mass of zinc by the number of moles of zinc:
Mass of protein = Mass of zinc / Percent composition by mass of zinc = 0.855 g / 0.855% = 100 g
Moles of protein = Mass of protein / Molar mass of protein = 100 g / Minimum molecular mass of protein
By rearranging the equation, we find:
Minimum molecular mass of protein = mass of protein / Moles of protein = 100 g / 0.0131 mol = 7633 g/mol
Therefore, the minimum molecular mass of the protein is 7633 g/mol.
To solve this question, you need to understand the concept of mass percentage and use it to find the minimum molecular mass of the protein.
To start, let's assume the total mass of the protein is x. We are given that the protein has 0.855% zinc by mass. This means that the mass of zinc in the protein is 0.855% of x.
Now, we need to convert this mass of zinc to the actual quantity of zinc present in the protein. For this, we use the atomic mass of zinc, which is 65.38 g/mol.
To find the quantity of zinc in grams, we calculate:
Mass of zinc = (0.855/100) * x
Next, we can use the molar mass of zinc and the mass of zinc in grams to find the number of moles of zinc:
Number of moles of zinc = Mass of zinc / Molar mass of zinc
Finally, to determine the minimum molecular mass of the protein, we need to find the number of moles of the protein. Since the mass of the protein is x, the number of moles of the protein can be calculated as:
Number of moles of protein = x / Molecular mass of the protein
By comparing the number of moles of zinc to the number of moles of the protein, we realize that one mole of the protein contains the same number of moles of zinc.
Therefore, we equate the number of moles of zinc to the number of moles of the protein:
Number of moles of zinc = Number of moles of protein
Setting up the equation:
(Mass of zinc) / (Molar mass of zinc) = (x / Molecular mass of the protein)
Simplifying the equation:
(0.855/100) * x / 65.38 = x / Molecular mass of the protein
Further simplifying:
0.00855 * x / 65.38 = x / Molecular mass of the protein
To find the minimum molecular mass of the protein, we can solve this equation for Molecular mass of the protein:
Molecular mass of the protein = (0.00855 * x / 65.38) * x
This equation gives us the minimum molecular mass of the protein. By plugging in the appropriate values, you can solve for the molecular mass of the protein.