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Chemistry help please

What does the percentage abundance mean? How does a mass spectrometer work? Someone please help me, I dont understand this
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Love123443
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I just need to understand it, please help me
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Love123443
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Thankyou so much, I understand it now x :smile:
I can't help you loads. If could have helped if you had more specific questions in mind, but regardless...

Do you know why chlorine has the atomic mass of 35.5?

Well the percentage abundance is just the abundance of the isotope as a percentage. Chlorine is found naturally in the atmosphere in two isotopes (there may be more but they're so small that we don't count them). 75% of chlorine naturally found is of the isotope Cl-35.

That means 0.75*35 = 26.25
0.25*37 = 9.25

Add those together...35.5.

As for mass spectrometry, you don't need to heavily know how this works...

Just read these... Then read your textbook and answer the questions.
http://www.chemguide.co.uk/analysis/masspecmenu.html#top
https://www2.chemistry.msu.edu/faculty/reusch/virttxtjml/spectrpy/massspec/masspec1.htm

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