Naming a Hydrate
Hydrates are
compounds that attract and bond with water molecules when they crystallize.
The two parts of a hydrate are the anhydrous salt and the water of hydration.
The ratio of these water molecules in the compound is always a whole number.
A sample hydrate formula is written as follows: CuSO4•5H2O.
CuSO4 is the anhydrous salt and 5H2O
is the water of hydration.
Example:
Name CuSO4•5H2O
Description of Action
Action
1.
Name the salt.
CuSO4
is copper(II) sulfate
2.
Determine the prefix to be used based on the number of water molecules.
The list of prefixes used in naming hydrates are listed in a chart
below.
There
are 5 water molecules, so you should use the prefix penta-.
copper(II)
sulfatepenta-
3.
Add the word "hydrate" to the end of the prefix.
copper(II)
sulfatepentahydrate
The prefixes used for
naming hydrates are as follows: