Stuck on an Empirical Formula Problem

[Themaster711]

Pyridine is recovered from coke-oven gases and is used extensively in the chemical industry, in particular, in the synthesis of vitamins and drugs. Pyridine contains carbon, hydrogen, and nitrogen. A 0.546 g sample was burned to produce 1.518 g of carbon dioxide and 0.311 g of water. Determine the empirical formula of pyridine.

Please show me step by step. I can't seem to figure this out.

 

[Borek]

Show what you have tried. How many moles of carbon in the sample? Of hydrogen? Of nitrogen?

 

[Themaster711]

By using the masses given, I was able to find that for every H2O that is created, there will be 2 CO2 created. I do not know anything about the nitrogen because nothing is said about it in the question. Also, the mass given for the pyridine does me no good because I do not know the formula for it. So far my pyridine is C?H?N?.

 

[Borek]

I do not know anything about the nitrogen because nothing is said about it in the question. Also, the mass given for the pyridine does me no good because I do not know the formula for it.

What is mass of carbon in CO₂? Hydrogen in H₂O? Can you use this information to calculate mass of nitrogen?

 

[Themaster711]

Thank you so much. That was all I needed. Problem solved.

 

[Borek]

You are welcome.