Teflon, used for non-stick coatings, is a polymer chemically known as Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE).
1. Identifying the Monomer:
The name "Polytetrafluoroethylene" implies that the polymer is made of many "tetrafluoroethylene" units. Therefore, the monomer $X$ is
tetrafluoroethylene.
2. Molecular Structure of X:
Tetrafluoroethylene is an alkene where all four hydrogen atoms of ethylene ($C_2H_4$) are replaced by fluorine atoms.
The structural formula is:
$$F_2C = CF_2$$
3. Counting Fluorine Atoms:
By looking at the formula $C_2F_4$:
• There are $2$ carbon atoms.
• There are
4 fluorine atoms.
Thus, the number of fluorine atoms in the monomer $X$ is 4.