EVERYDAY SCIENCE

Detailed explanation-1: -The molecular formula is most useful when you wish to know how many atoms of the elements are present in the compound. It gives more information than the empirical formula, and is therefore more common. The molecular formula is especially important when you start to work with organic chemistry.

Detailed explanation-2: -Answer: Molecular formula of a compound is always more informative than the empirical formula as the empirical formula can only tell us about the relative ratio in which the atoms have combined.

Detailed explanation-3: -Molecular formulas tell you how many atoms of each element are in a compound, and empirical formulas tell you the simplest or most reduced ratio of elements in a compound. If a compound’s molecular formula cannot be reduced any more, then the empirical formula is the same as the molecular formula.

Detailed explanation-4: -The molecular formula is an expression that defines the number of atoms of each element in one molecule of a compound. It shows the actual number of each atom in a molecule. For example, the molecular formula of propane is C4H10. In this formula, there are 4 carbon atoms and 10 hydrogen atoms in the given compound.

Detailed explanation-5: -For example: a molecule of hydrogen peroxide is made up of two atoms of O and two atoms of H bonded together-the molecular formula is thus H2O2. Since the simplest ratio of H and O atoms is 1:1, the empirical formula (though not the actual arrangement of atoms within the molecule) is HO.