Most ionic compounds contain a single anion and a single cation.
The name of these has the
cation name followed by the
anion name.
NaCl is a compound containing sodium ions (Na+) and chloride ions (Cl–)
The name of this compound is sodium chloride.
CaBr2 is a compound containing calcium ions (Ca2+) and bromide ions (Br–).
The name of this compound is calcium bromide.
Note that the names of ionic compounds do NOT indicate the relative numbers of each type of ion that is present.
Therefore when writing the
formula of an ionic compound from its name, it is important take account of the fact that the lattice of ionic compounds must have equal numbers of positive and negative charges.
Thus calcium bromide must be CaBr2 as there must be two Br– for each Ca2+.