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If you wrote S8, people would think there were 8 sulfur atoms in the molecule.

S is the symbol for the element sulfur, S8 is the symbol of an allotropic form.

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11y ago
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1w ago

Sulfur is written as S in chemical equations to represent the individual sulfur atoms, not the elemental form S8. Using S8 would imply that sulfur exists as a molecule in the reaction, which is not the case in most chemical reactions. Sulfur typically exists as S8 molecules in its elemental form, but in reactions, it is considered as individual atoms for simplicity.

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Q: Why is sulphur written as S in chemical equations and not S8?
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Related questions

How many atoms in sulphur?

There are 16 atoms in a molecule of sulphur, which has a chemical formula of S8.


Is the chemical formula for sulphur S2?

No, the chemical formula for sulfur is typically written as S8, indicating that sulfur atoms naturally occur bonded together in pairs.


Is S8 a metal or non-metal?

'S8' is an allotrope of sulphur. It is a non metal. It is yellow coloured, archaically known as 'Flowers of Sulphur'.


What is sulfur's chemical composition?

Sulphur occurs naturally as the pure element.It's a chemical element with symbol S, and atomic number 16. Sulphur atoms form cyclic octatomic molecules with the chemical formula S8. Elemental sulphur is a bright yellow crystalline solid at room temperature.


What is the formula of sulphur?

The chemical formula of sulfur is S, indicating that it is composed of one sulfur atom.


How many atoms are there in sulphur?

8 atoms in S8


Is sulfur a diatomic molecule?

Sulfur is not a diatomic molecule in its elemental form. In nature, sulfur typically exists as S8, a molecule made up of 8 sulfur atoms bonded together.


What is the chemical formula sulfur molecule?

The chemical symbol of sulfur in equations is S. However, the real chemical formula is S8, so basically 8 atoms of sulfur react to become one molecule. S8 has a crown shape with three spikes on top and two spikes on the bottom. It is too much a bother to write S8 and balance it so we write S in equations.


What is molecular formula of sulphur molecule?

rombic sulphar molecule consist of 8 atoms S8


Is gaseous sulphur monatomic or diatomic or triatomic or which?

Sulfur in its gaseous form exists as diatomic molecules, meaning that it consists of two sulfur atoms bonded together (S2).


What is the chemical formula for sulfer?

S or S8


What is the oxidation number of sulphur in sulphur powder?

The oxidation number of sulfur in sulfur powder (S8) is 0. Each sulfur atom in the elemental form has an oxidation number of 0.