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Example: Find the total charge for a mole of electrons

How much total charge (in coulombs) is in one mole of electrons?

Facts

Goal

Solution

The total charge $Q$ can be written as the number of particles $N$ times the charge of each particle ($e$, for electrons): $Q=N\cdot e$. We know $e$, and since we know we are interested in exactly 1 mole, we can find $N$: \begin{align*} N &= 1 \text{ mol} \cdot 6.022 \cdot 10^{23} \text{ mol}^{-1} \\ &= 6.022 \cdot 10^{23} \end{align*} We now have $N$ and $e$. The total charge $Q$ is then given by \begin{align*} Q &= N \cdot e \\ &= 6.022 \cdot 10^{23} \cdot -1.602 \cdot 10^{-19} \text{ C} \\ &= -9.647 \cdot 10^4 \text{ C} \end{align*}