What is the empirical formula?
It is simply the simplest formula of a compound with all of the coefficients reduced
Summary-how to determine the empirical formula
step1 Obtain the mass of each element in the compound, in grams
step2 Determine the moles of each element
step3 Divide the # of moles in each element by the smallest # of mole to convert the smallest # to . The integers obtained are the subscripts in the emperical formula.
step4 If you did not obtain whole integers, multiply by the smallest # to get a whole #. you must multiply everything by that # to get the subscripts for the emperical formula.