Formulae

Using letter symbols

It is a nuisance to draw circles all the time. Instead we can use letters to represent atoms. The water molecule can be written H O H or, more quickly, H2O, meaning that in one molecule of water, two atoms of hydrogen are combined with one atom of oxygen. When the molecule has more than one atom of any element the number of atoms of that element is written following the symbol, as a subscript. A subscript is written just below the line. We do not bother to write H2O1: the 1 symbols are understood. These are not pictures. Each is a formula. (The plural of formula is formulae.)
At its simplest, a formula is a statement, in symbols, showing which elements are present in the compound and in what proportions.

For example, sodium sulphide has the formula Na2S. This means that sodium sulphide contains sodium atoms and sulphur atoms in the ratio of 2:1.

Symbols for elements

Each element has its own symbol. A few very common elements have their initial letter as their symbol. Examples are: C for carbon; H for hydrogen; O for oxygen. Other elements have two letters. The rst is a capital; the second is a small letter. Usually the letters come from the name of the element. Examples are: Cl for chlorine; Ne for neon; Ca for calcium. Elements which have been known since ancient times have symbols derived from their Latin names. Examples are: Fe for iron (ferrum); Na for sodium (natrium); Cu for copper (cuprum). Never use the symbols as shorthand. Ca means one atom of calcium or one mole of calcium atoms, not calcium.

Understanding what a formula tells us

In any compound, the component elements are present in the same fixed proportions, no matter how the compound is prepared (the Law of Constant Composition).

The chemical formula of a substance tells: which atoms are present in the substance; if the substance is ionic, the relative numbers of atoms of each element in the substance; if the substance is molecular, the actual number of atoms of each element in one molecule of the substance. The formula does not tell us whether the compound is ionic or molecular.

What is valency?
Each atom has a combining power called its valency. You can imagine that each atom has a number of hands. The number of hands is equal to the valency of that atom. Some atoms can have more than one valency.
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