it is not a molecule
For ionic compounds the correct term is formula unit, not molecule.
Ionic compounds do not have molecular formulas. Instead, they have empirical formulas that represent the simplest whole-number ratio of ions in the compound. Ionic compounds are formed by the combination of positive and negative ions held together by electrostatic forces.
The term formula mass is generally defined as the mass of a unit cell in an ionic compound. Molecular compounds are just defined in terms of molecular mass.
Na2SO4 is not a molecular formula because it represents an ionic compound, sodium sulfate. In ionic compounds, the elements are held together by ionic bonds rather than sharing electrons in covalent bonds like in molecular compounds. The formula Na2SO4 indicates that there are two sodium ions (Na+) for every sulfate ion (SO4^2-).
What you write for an ionic compound is called the formula unit, but the formula unit is almost always the same as the empirical formula. The answer to your question could not be the molecular formula because an ionic compound is not a molecule.
Ionic compounds have higher melting and boiling points than molecular compounds due to the strong electrostatic forces between ions. Ionic compounds are usually solid at room temperature, while molecular compounds can be solid, liquid, or gas. Ionic compounds conduct electricity when dissolved in water, while molecular compounds do not.
An ionic compound is not represented by a molecular formula because it does not exist as discrete molecules. Instead, it exists as a three-dimensional array of positively and negatively charged ions held together by ionic bonds. The formula for an ionic compound represents the simplest ratio of the ions present in the compound.
draw a structural formula for organics, write a chemical formula (molecular formula or ionic formula) for simpler compounds.
draw a structural formula for organics, write a chemical formula (molecular formula or ionic formula) for simpler compounds.
Many ionic compounds exist as crystals but covalent compounds as molecules (there are exceptions as diamond though). Ionic compounds would be good electrical conductors unlike molecular compounds.
Sodium sulfate is an ionic compound, consisting of Na+ and SO4^2- ions, held together by ionic bonds. It does not exist as individual molecules like covalent compounds do, so it does not have a molecular formula.
Water can dissolve some ionic compounds as well as some molecular compounds because of its polarity. It is polar enough to dissolve ionic compounds into their ions. Water does not dissolve molecular compounds by breaking covalent bonds, but through intermolecular forces.