What is the empirical formula of a hydrocarbon containing 0.160 moles of carbon and 0.640 moles of hydrogen

To determine the empirical formula of a hydrocarbon, we need to know the number of moles of each element present in the compound. In this case, we are given that the hydrocarbon contains 0.160 moles of carbon and 0.640 moles of hydrogen. To find the empirical formula, we need to determine the simplest whole-number ratio of the atoms in the compound. We can start by dividing the number of moles of each element by the smallest number of moles to obtain a ratio of the atoms in the compound. In this case, the smallest number of moles is 0.160, which corresponds to the number of moles of carbon. Dividing the number of moles of hydrogen by 0.160, we get: 0.640 mol H / 0.160 mol C = 4 mol H/mol C This means that there are four times as many hydrogen atoms as carbon atoms in the compound. Therefore, the empirical formula of the hydrocarbon is CH\(_{4}\), which corresponds to one carbon atom and four hydrogen atoms. So, the answer is option (C) CH\(_{4}\).