The molar mass of carbon is 12 grams per mole (12 g/mol).
Here's a breakdown of how this is determined:
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Atomic Mass: The atomic mass of carbon-12 (the most common isotope of carbon) is exactly 12 atomic mass units (amu). This is based on the definition of the unified atomic mass unit, which is defined by carbon-12.
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Molar Mass Definition: Molar mass is the mass of one mole of a substance. One mole is defined as containing Avogadro's number (approximately 6.022 x 1023) of entities (atoms, molecules, etc.).
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Relationship: The numerical value of the atomic mass of an element in atomic mass units (amu) is the same as the numerical value of its molar mass in grams per mole (g/mol). Therefore, since the atomic mass of carbon-12 is 12 amu, its molar mass is 12 g/mol.
In summary, you can find the molar mass of carbon by looking up its atomic mass on the periodic table (which is based on a weighted average of the naturally occurring isotopes) and expressing that value in grams per mole. For most purposes, the molar mass of carbon is considered to be 12.01 g/mol due to the presence of carbon-13 and trace amounts of other isotopes. However, for carbon-12 specifically, the molar mass is exactly 12 g/mol.
