Multiple Choice
How many hydrogen atoms are present in one molecule of water (H_2O)?
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3. Chemical Reactions
Molecular Formula
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Which of the following is the molecular formula for cellulose, a common polysaccharide found in plants?
A
C6H10O5
B
C12H22O11
C
C6H12O6
D
(C6H10O5)n
Verified step by step guidance1
Understand that cellulose is a polysaccharide, which means it is made up of many repeating sugar units (monomers) linked together.
Recognize that the basic monomer unit of cellulose is glucose, which has the molecular formula \(C6H12O6\).
When glucose units polymerize to form cellulose, a condensation reaction occurs, where water molecules (\(H2O\)) are removed during the formation of glycosidic bonds between monomers.
Because water is lost during polymerization, the empirical formula of the repeating unit in cellulose changes from \(C6H12O6\) to \(C6H10O5\).
Therefore, the molecular formula of cellulose is represented as \((C6H10O5)_n\), where \(n\) indicates the number of repeating glucose units in the polymer chain.
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