Homework Problem F.3 (part a)

[Chloe Thorpe 1J]

In the homework question F.3 (7th edition), part a, it asks you to write the formula for nitric acid. How would you find this? And will there be questions/parts of questions on exams that ask you to start with writing the formula for a compound from only the name?

Sorry if this is a dumb question, I seem to have a lot of foundational gaps since I didn't take AP Chem in high school :/

[Rhea Churi 4K]

Nitric Acid is HNO3
Usually, when something is an acid it contains an H+ ion.
Because it is Nitric, that means it has an NO3- ion (because it ends in "-ic" that means the ion itself ends in "-ate", so a nitrate ion). I'm pretty sure Dr. Lavelle said we would be learning how to name them soon and for now we didn't need to worry about knowing the formulas. I would definitely ask again whenever your next lecture is.
Hope this helps!

[sarahartzell1A]

There are some common rules you can memorize to help you find the formulas for acids and other compounds. For example, if an acid ends in "ic," it comes from an anion that ended in "ate," in this case nitrate (NO3-). Since the anion has a 1- charge, one hydrogen is needed to balance the charge. The formula then is HNO3. As for exams, I am not quite sure about that part. Hope this helps.