molecular weight

molecular weight,

weight of a moleculemolecule
[New Lat.,=little mass], smallest particle of a compound that has all the chemical properties of that compound. A single atom is usually not referred to as a molecule, and ionic compounds such as common salt are not made up of molecules.
..... Click the link for more information. of a substance expressed in atomic mass unitsatomic mass unit
or amu,
in chemistry and physics, unit defined as exactly 1-12 the mass of an atom of carbon-12, the isotope of carbon with six protons and six neutrons in its nucleus. One amu is equal to approximately 1.66 × 10⁻²⁴ grams.
..... Click the link for more information. (amu). The molecular weight may be calculated from the molecular formulaformula,
in chemistry, an expression showing the chemical composition of a compound. Formulas of compounds are used in writing the equations (see chemical equations) that represent chemical reactions. Compounds are combinations in fixed proportions of the chemical elements.
..... Click the link for more information. of the substance; it is the sum of the atomic weightsatomic weight,
mean (weighted average) of the masses of all the naturally occurring isotopes of a chemical element, as contrasted with atomic mass, which is the mass of any individual isotope. Although the first atomic weights were calculated at the beginning of the 19th cent.
..... Click the link for more information. of the atoms making up the molecule. For example, water has the molecular formula H₂O, indicating that there are two atoms of hydrogen and one atom of oxygen in a molecule of water. Rounded to three decimal places, the atomic weight of hydrogen is 1.008 amu and that of oxygen is 15.999 amu. The molecular weight of water is thus (2×1.008)+(1×15.999)=2.016+15.999=18.015 amu. Since atomic weights are average values, molecular weights are also average values. On the average, a molecule of ordinary water weighs 18.015 amu. Both hydrogen and oxygen are made up of several isotopes. One isotope of hydrogen is deuterium, or heavy hydrogen. Atoms of deuterium are about twice as massive as the average for all hydrogen atoms in ordinary water. Therefore water that contains only atoms of deuterium, called heavy water, has a higher molecular weight than ordinary water. Some substances, especially ionic compounds such as common salt, are not made up of molecules and thus have neither a molecular formula nor a molecular weight.

Molecular weights of substances may be determined experimentally in various ways, the method employed usually depending on the state (solid, liquid, or gas) of the substance. Methods for determining the molecular weights of gaseous substances are based on Avogadro's law, which states that under given conditions of temperature and pressure a given volume of any gas contains a specific number of molecules of the gas; thus a comparison of the weights of equal volumes of different gases under the same conditions of temperature and pressure is equivalent to a direct comparison of the weights of molecules of the gases. The molecular weights of substances that are not normally gaseous and do not evaporate without decomposition are sometimes determined from their effects on the melting point, boiling point, vapor pressure, or osmotic pressure of some solvent (see colligative propertiescolligative properties,
properties of a solution that depend on the number of solute particles present but not on the chemical properties of the solute. Colligative properties of a solution include freezing point (see freezing), boiling point, osmotic pressure (see osmosis), and
..... Click the link for more information. ). However, if the substance ionizes or does not completely separate into molecules, the molecular weight so determined will be erroneous. Highly accurate molecular weights are sometimes determined by using the mass spectrographmass spectrograph,
device used to separate electrically charged particles according to their masses; a form of the instrument known as a mass spectrometer is often used to measure the masses of isotopes of elements. J. J. Thomson and F. W. Aston showed (c.
..... Click the link for more information. .

Some substances, e.g., proteins, viruses, and certain synthetic polymers, have very high molecular weights. These molecular weights may be determined by measurement of sedimentation rate in an ultracentrifuge, by light-scattering photometry, or by other methods. The methods may give different results, since usually the molecules of a substance such as a polymer do not all have exactly the same molecular weight. These methods determine an average molecular weight for the molecules in the sample. The number-average molecular weight determined by the ultracentrifuge method gives a value that is equal to the weight of the sample divided by the number of molecules in the sample. This number-average molecular weight can also be determined by other methods based on measurement of colligative properties. The light-scattering method determines what is called the weight-average molecular weight. Although this may be the same value as the number-average molecular weight if all the molecules have nearly the same weight, it will be higher if some of the molecules are heavier than others.

Molecular weight

The sum of the atomic weights of all atoms making up a molecule. Actually, what is meant by molecular weight is molecular mass. The use of this expression is historical, however, and will be maintained. The atomic weight is the mass, in atomic mass units, of an atom. It is approximately equal to the total number of nucleons, protons, and neutrons composing the nucleus. Since 1961 the official definition of the atomic mass unit (amu) has been that it is 1/12 the mass of the carbon-12 isotope, which is assigned the value 12.000 exactly. See Atomic mass, Atomic mass unit

A mole is an amount of substance containing the Avogadro number, N_A, approximately 6.022 × 10²³, of molecules or atoms. Molecule, in this definition, is understood to be the smallest unit making up the characteristic compound. Originally, the mole was interpreted as that number of particles whose total mass in grams was numerically equivalent to the atomic or molecular weight in atomic mass units, referred to as gram-atomic or gram-molecular weight. This is how the above value for N_A was calculated. As the ability to make measurements of the absolute masses of single atoms and molecules has improved, however, modern metrology is tending to alter its approach and define the Avogadro number as an exact quantity, thereby changing slightly the definition of the atomic mass unit and removing the need to define atomic weight with respect to a particular isotopic species. The latest and most accurate value for the Avogadro number is 6.0221415(10) × 10²³ mol^-1.

As the masses of all the atomic species are now well known, masses of molecules can be determined once the composition of the molecule has been ascertained. Alternatively, if the molecular weight of the molecule is known and enough additional information about composition is available, such as the basic atomic constituents, it is possible to begin to assemble structural information about the molecule. Thus, the determination of the molecular weight is one of the first steps in the analysis of an unknown species. Given the increasing emphasis on the study of biologically important molecules, particular attention has been focused on the determination of molecular weights of larger and larger units. There are a number of methods available, and the one chosen will depend on the size and physical state of the molecule. All processes are physical macroscopic measurements and determine the molecular weight directly. Connection to the absolute mass scale is straightforward by using the Avogadro number, although, for extremely large molecules, this connection is often unnecessary or impossible, as the accuracy of the measurements is not that good. The main function of molecular weight determination of large molecules is elucidation of structure.

Molecular weight determination of materials which are solid or liquid at room temperature is best achieved by taking advantage of one of the colligative properties of solutions, boiling-point elevation, freezing-point lowering, or osmotic pressure, which depend on the number of particles in solution, not on the nature of the particle. The choice of which to use will depend on a number of properties of the substance, the most important of which will be the size. All require that the molecule be small enough to dissolve in the solution but large enough not to participate in the phase change or pass through a semipermeable membrane. Freezing-point lowering is an excellent method for determining molecular weights of smaller organic molecules, and osmometry, as the osmotic pressure determination is called, for determining molecular weights of larger organic molecules, particularly polymeric species. Boiling-point elevation is used less frequently.

The basis of all the methods involving colligative properties of solutions is that the chemical potentials of all phases must be the same. (Chemical potential is the partial change in energy of a system as matter is transferred into or out of it. For two systems in contact at equilibrium, the chemical potentials for each must be equal.)

Another measurement from which molecular weights can be obtained is based on the scattering of light from the molecule. A beam of light falling on a molecule will induce in the molecule a dipole moment which in its turn will radiate. The interference between the radiated beam and the incoming beam produces an angular dependence of the scattered radiation which depends on the molecular weight of the molecule. This occurs whether the molecule is free or in solution. While the theory for this effect is complicated and varies according to the size of the molecule, the general result for molecules whose size is considerably less than that of the wavelength λ of the radiation (less than λ/50) is given by the equation below; I() is the intensity of radiation at angle , I₀ the intensity of the incoming beam, M the molecular weight, and c the concentration in grams per cubic centimeter of the molecule. If the molecules are much larger than λ/50 (about 9 nanometers for visible light), this relationship in this simple form is no longer valid, but the method is still viable with appropriate adjustments to the theory. In fact, it can be used in its extended version even for large aggregates. See Scattering of electromagnetic radiation

molecular weight

[mə′lek·yə·lər ′wāt] (chemistry) The sum of the atomic weights of all the atoms in a molecule. Also known as relative molecular mass.

molecular weight

weight

[wāt] 1. heaviness; the degree to which a body is drawn toward the earth by gravity. (See also Tables of Weights and Measures in the Appendix.) Abbreviated wt.2. in statistics, the process of assigning greater importance to some observations than to others, or a mathematical factor used to apply such a process.apothecaries' weight see apothecaries' system.atomic weight the sum of the masses of the constituents of an atom, expressed in units" >atomic mass units (or daltons" >daltons), in SI units (i.e., kilograms), or as a dimensionless ratio derived by comparing the mass to the mass of an atom of carbon-12, which is taken as 12.000. Abbreviated At wt.avoirdupois weight see avoirdupois system.equivalent weight the amount of substance that combines with or displaces 8.0 g of oxygen (or 1.008 g of hydrogen), usually expressed in grams; for acid/base reactions, one equivalent donates or receives a mole of protons and the equivalent weight is the ratio of the molecular weight to the number of protons involved in the reaction. For oxidation-reduction reactions, one equivalent donates or receives a mole of electrons and the equivalent weight is the ratio of the molecular weight to the number of electrons involved in the reaction.gram molecular weight the molecular weight of a substance expressed in grams; one gram molecular weight of a molecular substance contains one mole of molecules. See also mole¹.low birth weight (LBW) see under infant.molecular weight the weight of a molecule of a chemical compound as compared with the weight of an atom of carbon-12; it is equal to the sum of the weights of its constituent atoms and is dimensionless. Abbreviated Mol wt or MW. Although widely used, the term is not technically correct; relative molecular mass is preferable.very low birth weight (VLBW) see under infant.

mo·lec·u·lar weight (mol wt, MW),

the sum of the atomic weights of all the atoms constituting a molecule; the mass of a molecule relative to the mass of a standard atom, now ¹²C (taken as 12.000). Relative molecular mass (M_r) is the mass relative to the dalton and has no units.
See also: atomic weight. Synonym(s): molecular mass, molecular weight ratio, relative molecular mass

mo·lec·u·lar weight

(mŏ-lekyū-lăr wāt) The sum of the atomic weights of all the atoms constituting a molecule; the mass of a molecule relative to the mass of a standard atom, now ¹²C (taken as 12.000). Relative molecular mass (M_r) is the mass relative to the dalton and has no units.
See also: atomic weight
Synonym(s): molecular weight ratio, relative molecular mass.

molecular weight

The sum of the weights of all the atoms in the molecule.

mo·lec·u·lar weight

(mol wt, MW) (mŏ-lekyū-lăr wāt) The sum of the atomic weights of all the atoms constituting a molecule.
Synonym(s): molecular weight ratio, relative molecular mass.

molecular weight

molecular weight

molecular weight

molec′ular weight′

molecular weight

molecular weight

molecular weight,

Molecular weight

molecular weight

molecular weight

weight

mo·lec·u·lar weight (mol wt, MW),

mo·lec·u·lar weight

molecular weight

mo·lec·u·lar weight

molecular weight

Synonyms for molecular weight

noun (chemistry) the sum of the relative atomic masses of the constituent atoms of a molecule

Synonyms

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