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Fundamental chemical concepts

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Displayed formulae

A molecular formula, such as H2O, shows the number and type of each atom in a molecule.

A displayed formula shows the symbols for each atom in a compound, with straight lines joining them to represent the covalent bonds. The table shows some examples of displayed formulae:

elementformulachemical structureball-and-stick model
hydrogenH2H - Htwo atoms joined with a straight horizontal line
waterH2OH - O - Hthree atoms joined
ammoniaNH3H - N - H (with a line down from the N to an H) four atoms joined
methaneCH4H - C - H in a row, line from above the C to an H, line from below the C to an H five atoms joined

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