(a) What is the empirical formula of starch? (b) What is the monomer that forms the basis of the starch polymer? (c) What bond connects the monomer units in starch: amide, acid, ether, ester, or alcohol?

Short Answer

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(a) The empirical formula of starch is \(\displaystyle C_{6} H_{10} O_{5}\). (b) The monomer that forms the basis of the starch polymer is glucose, with a molecular formula of \(\displaystyle C_{6} H_{12} O_{6}\). (c) The bond connecting the monomer units in starch is an ether bond, also known as a glycosidic bond.

Step by step solution

01

(a) Empirical formula of starch

Starch is a complex carbohydrate, mainly found in plants. It consists of two types of glucose polymers, amylose and amylopectin. Both amylose and amylopectin consist of glucose monomers connected through glycosidic bonds. The empirical formula of glucose is \(\displaystyle C_{6} H_{10} O_{5}\).
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(b) Monomer forming the basis of the starch polymer

The monomer that forms the basis of starch is the glucose molecule. Glucose is a simple sugar with the molecular formula of \(\displaystyle C_{6} H_{12} O_{6}\).
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(c) The bond connecting the monomer units in starch

The bond that connects glucose molecules in starch is called a glycosidic bond. A glycosidic bond consists of an oxygen atom connecting two carbon atoms, one from each monomer. This type of bond is an ether bond, so the correct answer is an ether bond.

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