Questions: A chemistry student needs 50.0 mL of acetone for an experiment. By consulting the CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics, the student discovers that the density of acetone is 0.790 g · cm^-3. Calculate the mass of acetone the student should weigh out. Be sure your answer has the correct number of significant digits.

Solution Steps

The problem provides the following information:

• Volume of acetone, \( V = 50.0 \, \text{mL} \)
• Density of acetone, \( \rho = 0.790 \, \text{g/cm}^3 \)

Since \( 1 \, \text{mL} = 1 \, \text{cm}^3 \), the volume in cubic centimeters is: \[ V = 50.0 \, \text{cm}^3 \]

The formula for mass \( m \) is: \[ m = \rho \cdot V \]

Substitute the given values: \[ m = 0.790 \, \text{g/cm}^3 \times 50.0 \, \text{cm}^3 \]

\[ m = 0.790 \times 50.0 = 39.50 \, \text{g} \]

Final Answer