The molar mass of barium (Ba) is approximately 137.33 g/mol. This value represents the mass of one mole of barium atoms.
To understand this better, let’s break it down:
- Barium (Ba) is a chemical element with the atomic number 56. This means it has 56 protons in its nucleus.
- The molar mass is calculated by summing the masses of all the protons, neutrons, and electrons in an atom. However, since electrons have a negligible mass compared to protons and neutrons, the molar mass is primarily determined by the number of protons and neutrons.
- In the case of barium, the most common isotope is Ba-138, which has 56 protons and 82 neutrons. The combined mass of these particles gives us the molar mass of approximately 137.33 g/mol.
This value is crucial in chemistry for various calculations, such as determining the amount of substance in moles or converting between mass and moles in chemical reactions.