Question

Which of the following chemical formulas CANNOT be simplified into an empirical formula?

a) C4H16O5
b) N8H4F4
c) Ca2Br4
d) Mg5I10

Answer 1

The answer is a)
`C_(4) H_(16) O_(5)`

Step-by-step explanation:

The other chemical formulas' subscripts share a common factor, so they can be simplified to an empirical formula, however, the subscripts in
`C_(4) H_(16) O_(5)` cannot be simplified any further, because they do not share any more whole-number factors with each other.