Final answer:
In each molecule of 3,3-dimethylpentane, there are 16 hydrogen atoms total, which come from two methyl groups and two ethyl groups attached to the central carbon atom.
Step-by-step explanation:
The chemical formula for 3,3-dimethylpentane is (CH3)2C(C2H5)2. To find out the number of hydrogen atoms in each molecule of 3,3-dimethylpentane, we need to analyze the formula given. The chemical formula tells us that we have two CH3 (methyl) groups and two C2H5 (ethyl) groups.
Each methyl group contains 3 hydrogen atoms, so two methyl groups contribute a total of 2 x 3 = 6 hydrogen atoms. Each ethyl group contains 5 hydrogen atoms, so two ethyl groups contribute a total of 2 x 5 = 10 hydrogen atoms. The central carbon (C) doesn’t have any hydrogen atoms explicitly attached, as they are all part of the methyl and ethyl groups.
Therefore, adding up all the hydrogen atoms, we have 6 (from the methyl groups) + 10 (from the ethyl groups) = 16 hydrogen atoms in each molecule of 3,3-dimethylpentane.