Answer to Question #306817 in General Chemistry for David

Question

In most of my homework, I found that the number of relative atomic mass RAM is the same as the molar mass. So, I'd like to ask whether...

1. RAM and molar mass are the same thing?
2. If no, why do they appear alike all the time?
3. and what are the differences between them?

Answer 1

Molar mass is simply the mass of one mole of a compound. Relative atomic mass is ratio between average mass of atoms of one element and 1/12 of mass of atom of carbon-12. Since RAM is relative, it is dimensionless, unlike molar mass. But as both are defined by pure carbon-12, numerically, they are the same.