An organic compound is found to contain C - 40%. 0 = 53.34% and H = 6.66%. Its empirical formula is

Options

A. `CHO`
B. `CH_2 O `
C. `C_2 H_2 O`
D. `CH_4 O_2`

Explanation

To determine the empirical formula of the organic compound containing 40% Carbon (C), 53.34% Oxygen (O), and 6.66% Hydrogen (H), we can follow these steps:

### Step 1: Assume a 100 g sample
Assuming we have a 100 g sample of the compound, we can directly convert the percentages to grams:
- Carbon: 40 g
- Oxygen: 53.34 g
- Hydrogen: 6.66 g

### Step 2: Calculate the number of moles of each element
Using the atomic masses:
- Atomic mass of Carbon (C) = 12 g/mol
- Atomic mass of Oxygen (O) = 16 g/mol
- Atomic mass of Hydrogen (H) = 1 g/mol

Now, we calculate the number of moles for each element:
- Moles of Carbon = \( \frac{40 \text{ g}}{12 \text{ g/mol}} = 3.33 \text{ moles} \)
- Moles of Oxygen = \( \frac{53.34 \text{ g}}{16 \text{ g/mol}} = 3.33 \text{ moles} \)
- Moles of Hydrogen = \( \frac{6.66 \text{ g}}{1 \text{ g/mol}} = 6.66 \text{ moles} \)

### Step 3: Determine the simplest mole ratio
Next, we need to find the simplest ratio of moles of each element:
- The moles of Carbon = 3.33
- The moles of Oxygen = 3.33
- The moles of Hydrogen = 6.66

To simplify, we can divide each by the smallest number of moles (which is 3.33):
- Ratio of Carbon = \( \frac{3.33}{3.33} = 1 \)
- Ratio of Oxygen = \( \frac{3.33}{3.33} = 1 \)
- Ratio of Hydrogen = \( \frac{6.66}{3.33} = 2 \)

Thus, the simplest mole ratio is:
- Carbon : Hydrogen : Oxygen = 1 : 2 : 1

### Step 4: Write the empirical formula
From the simplest mole ratio, we can write the empirical formula as:
- \( \text{C}_1\text{H}_2\text{O}_1 \) or simply \( \text{CH}_2\text{O} \)

### Final Answer
The empirical formula of the compound is **CH₂O**.

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