Calculating the Molecular Weight of Glucose Polymers

[doc.madani]

Glucose (C6H12O6) is a monomer that can form naturally occurring polymers.
What would be the approximate molecular weight of a polymer made from 5 glucose monomers?

a) 810
b) 828
c) 882
d) 900

i said D, but my friend in convincing me its B :S

 

[sjb-2812]

What happens when two glucose molecules bond together to form a disaccharide?

 

[doc.madani]

is it cellulose, in which the water molecules are condensed out. therefore you will need to subtract the molar mass of the water molecules from 900 ? hence the answer is B ??

 

[sjb-2812]

Well, I'm not sure that it's necessary cellulose (which to me is a specific condensation, and perhaps more than 5 monomers), but yes, that's the idea.

 

[LudusRex]

The correct answer is D. In order to calculate the molecular weight of a polymer made from 5 glucose monomers, we first need to know the molecular weight of one glucose molecule. The molecular weight of glucose is 180 g/mol (6 carbon atoms x 12 g/mol + 12 hydrogen atoms x 1 g/mol + 6 oxygen atoms x 16 g/mol).

To find the molecular weight of a polymer made from 5 glucose monomers, we need to multiply the molecular weight of one glucose molecule (180 g/mol) by 5. This gives us a total molecular weight of 900 g/mol (180 g/mol x 5).

Therefore, the approximate molecular weight of a polymer made from 5 glucose monomers is 900 g/mol, which is option D. Option B (828 g/mol) is incorrect because it does not take into account the additional mass of the 5th glucose monomer in the polymer.