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The atomic number is the number of protons in an atom. It is also the big whole number in the block with the element on the Periodic Table. Sodium Nitrate is not a atom, it is a compound.

The formula for sodium nitrate comes from the fact that sodium has a +1 charge and nitrate (NO3) has a -1 charge, so its NaNO3. I GUESS you could take the atomic number of sodium, nitrogen, and oxygen and add them all up....

11 + 7 + 3(8)= 42 but that's not really the atomic number......did you misunderstand the question? Perhaps it is asking for the Atomic Mass? Then you would add up the masses from the periodic table in the same way.

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14y ago

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