What is the difference between symbol and formula?
A chemical symbol designates an element that belongs to the periodic table.
A chemical formula combines two or more symbols and it represents a chemical compound. We notice that the chemical symbols are followed oftenly by a subscript that represents the mole proportions of next element.
A chemical symbol is used to show an element which is not combined with any other elements . I'll list some examples.
H = hydrogen
He = helium
Li = lithium
N = nitrogen
Na = sodium
Notice that symbols can have 1 or 2 letters. The first letter is capitalized, the second must be written with a lowercase letter.
A chemical formula gives the type and number of elements which are found in a chemical compound. Here are some examples.
CO = carbon monoxide (carbon with oxygen)
H2O = water (hydrogen with oxygen)
NaCl = sodium chloride/salt (sodium with chlorine)
C6H12O6 = glucose (carbon, hydrogen and oxygen)
A chemical symbol designates an element that belongs to the periodic table.
A chemical formula combines two or more symbols and it represents a chemical compound. We notice that the chemical symbols are followed oftenly by a subscript that represents the mole proportions of next element.
A chemical symbol is used to show an element which is not combined with any other elements . I'll list some examples.
H = hydrogen
He = helium
Li = lithium
N = nitrogen
Na = sodium
Notice that symbols can have 1 or 2 letters. The first letter is capitalized, the second must be written with a lowercase letter.
A chemical formula gives the type and number of elements which are found in a chemical compound. Here are some examples.
CO = carbon monoxide (carbon with oxygen)
H2O = water (hydrogen with oxygen)
NaCl = sodium chloride/salt (sodium with chlorine)
C6H12O6 = glucose (carbon, hydrogen and oxygen)
