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How to Calculate the Structure Factor of an Element

The structure factor of a compound can be determined by obtaining the percentage of an element that is contained within the compound. Various elements are combined to form a specific compound. You will use a simple math equation to find an element's percentage in a compound. To do this, you first need to determine the compound to use and then obtain its chemical formula.

Instructions

- 1
  Select an element that is found in the compound. In glucose, for example, look at carbon.
- 2
  Write out the chemical formula for the compound. Using glucose as an example, the formula is expressed as ̶0;C6H12O6.̶1;
- 3
  Write the equation needed to calculate the percentage of an element that is present in the compound. This is expressed as ̶0;Percent of Element = (# of Atoms of Element in Formula) Atomic Mass of the Element/Mass of Compound.̶1;
- 4
  Write out the values for the compound and element. Glucose contains six carbon atoms, the mass of the compound is 180.1588 and the atomic mass of carbon is 12. Input these values into the equation in Step 3.
- 5
  Solve the equation. For the example, you will get a result of 0.399 or 40 percent. This means that there is 40 percent of the element carbon in the compound glucose.

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