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A student is given a sample of an inorganic compound that contains only carbon and hydrogen. The sample has a mass of 0.500 g and, upon combustion, produces 1.442 g of carbon dioxide and 0.589 g of water. Determine the empirical formula of the compound.

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To determine the empirical formula of the compound, we need to find the moles of carbon and hydrogen in the sample. We can do this by using the masses of carbon dioxide and water produced upon combustion.1. Calculate the moles of carbon from the mass of carbon dioxide produced:Mass of CO = 1.442 gMolar mass of CO = 12.01 g/mol  C  + 2 * 16.00 g/mol  O  = 44.01 g/molMoles of C =  mass of CO  /  molar mass of CO  = 1.442 g / 44.01 g/mol = 0.03276 mol2. Calculate the moles of hydrogen from the mass of water produced:Mass of HO = 0.589 gMolar mass of HO = 2 * 1.01 g/mol  H  + 16.00 g/mol  O  = 18.02 g/molMoles of H =  mass of HO  /  molar mass of HO  = 0.589 g / 18.02 g/mol = 0.03271 mol3. Determine the mole ratio of carbon to hydrogen:Divide the moles of each element by the smallest number of moles to get the mole ratio:Mole ratio of C:H = 0.03276 mol / 0.03271 mol : 0.03271 mol / 0.03271 mol = 1 : 14. Write the empirical formula:The empirical formula of the compound is CH, which indicates that there is one carbon atom and one hydrogen atom in the simplest ratio.

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