Mole Conversions: Part I

Good Evening my vaguely hostile readers!

today we will be learning how to convert

 into  .

"is this a joke?" asked the skeptical reader.

Well my dear reader, of course it is! We all know that moles don't like lotus roots!

(if anyone gets that reference, you will be forever endowed with cookies, love and my respect)

And before I am burned at the stake for creating such an obscure joke, we will introduce conversions from particles and grams to moles and vice versa. (IS IT GETTING HOT IN HERE OR IS IT JUST ME?)

Before we begin, there are a few ideas/definitions that need to be known:

Atomic Mass

• in ATOMIC MASS UNITS (u)
• the relative mass of atoms compared to the Carbon-12 atom

Formula Mass

• in (u)
• total mass of all atoms in an ionic compound
• to find formula mass
1. count the number of atoms of a single element
• keep the elements separate, if that wasn't obvious enough while counting (DON'T START BURNING MY HAIR, I'M NOT DONE TEACHING. THANK YOU)
2. multiply the by the atomic mass of that element
3. add the masses of all elements with significant figures

Molecular Mass

• in (u)
• total mass of all atoms in a covalent compound, organic, or polyatomic element
• to find molecular mass
• follow steps displayed above

Molar Mass

• mass of one mole of a substance
• the same numerical value as atomic, formula, or molecular mass...
• ...but is expressed in grams/mole (g/mol)

Now that we have laid out some key ideas/definitions, we can now begin conversions!

(and if i stall long enough, maybe your fires will go out. ARGGH I KID I KID)

Conversions Between Particles and Moles

• remember the formula 6.022 x 10^23 particles/ 1 mole
• To convert from particles to moles
• we'll use 3.01 x 10^24 particles of carbon as our example
• we want to get rid of the particles in the formula stated above
• 3.01 x 10^24 particles (1 mole/ 6.022 x 10^23 particles)
• so we divide!
• to get our answer: 5.00 moles
• To convert from moles to particles/molecules/formula units/atoms
• we'll use 0.75 moles of Carbon Dioxide into molecules
• 0.75 moles x (6.022 x 10^23 molecules/ 1 mole)
• so we multiply!
• to get our answer: 4.5 x 10^23 molecules of Carbon Dioxide
• when asked to find more than one type of atom
• count the amount of atoms wanted to be found 
• multiply it by the answer found above
• (2 atoms of Oxygen/1 molecule of Carbon Dioxide) x (4.5 x 10^23 molecules of Carbon Dioxide)
• to get our answer: 9.00 x 10^23 atoms of oxygen

Conversions Between Grams and Moles

• you will need your trusty periodic table for these conversions
• Is similar to unit conversions
• To convert from gram to moles
• we'll use 3.45g of C as our example
• 3.45g x 1 mole/ 12.0g (molar mass)
• so we divide!
• to get our answer: 0.288 moles of Carbon
• To convert from moles to grams
• we'll use 2.04 moles of Carbon as our example
• 2.04 moles x (12.0g/mol / 1 mole)
• so we multiply!
• to get our answer: 24.5 g of C

So as I continue to burn from the fury of my readers, I leave you a link to a mole to molecule calculator, a link to a grams to moles calculator, and 

(and as the wise mole cricket once said “Take a turn at every turn you encounter on your way.")

-JY