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Writing formulas. Look at first name. If it is ammonium, put NH 4 in parentheses and label it with a charge of +1 If it is mercury I, put the Hg 2 in parentheses and label it with a charge of +2
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Look at first name • If it is ammonium, put NH4 in parentheses and label it with a charge of +1 • If it is mercury I, put the Hg2 in parentheses and label it with a charge of +2 • If it is a metal, write the symbol with charge labeled. Note, if a roman numeral follows the metal name, that is the charge. • If it is a nonmetal, put its symbol. If there is a prefix, put the corresponding number as a subscript.
Look at second name • If it is a nonmetal, write its symbol with its charge labeled. • If it is a polyatomic anion, put its formula in parentheses and label it with its charge. • If it is a nonmetal, put its symbol. If there is a prefix, put the corresponding number as a subscript. Note, do not put a 1 as a subscript.
Finalizing • If your name is two nonmetals, you are finished. • If you have charges, crisscross them to get subscripts. • Make sure your subscripts go outside of parentheses • Make sure you reduce the subscripts to their lowest ratio
Hints • You only need to put parentheses around polyatomic ions if there is to be a subscript outside them. However, it is not wrong to always put polyatomics in parentheses. • Na(OH) or NaOH • Ca(OH)2, but not CaOH2 • If the charges balance out, then no subscripts are necessary. • Na+1 NO3-1 becomes simply NaNO3 • Mg+2 and O-2 becomes simply MgO
Examples • Sodium chloride Na+1 Cl -1 NaCl • Sodium nitrate Na+1 (NO3) -1 NaNO3 • Sodium sulfate Na+1 (SO4) -2 Na2SO4 • Ammonium sulfate (NH4)+1 (SO4) -2 (NH4)2(SO4) • Lead II iodide Pb+2 I -1 PbI2 • Lead II nitrate Pb+2 (NO3)-1 Pb(NO3)2 • Lead IV oxide Pb+4 O -2 Pb2O4 PbO2 • Dinitrogen pentoxide N2O5 • Aluminum oxide Al+3 O-2 Al2O3