Butanoic acid consists entirely of C, H and O. Upon combustion, a 0.3164g sample of butanoic acid produces 0.6322g CO2 and 0.2588g H2O.

Determine the empirical formula of butanoic acid

I don't want the answer just direction on how to solve this pls

Convert g CO2 to grams C.

Convert g H2O to grams H.
Then grams O = mass sample - grams C - g H.

Convert grams C to mols C.
Convert grams H to mols H.
Convert grams O to mols O.

Now find the ratio of C,H,O to each other with the smallest number being one. The easy way to do that is to divide the smallest number by itself, then divide the other numbers by the same small number.
Post your work if you need further assistance.

To determine the empirical formula of butanoic acid, we need to calculate the ratio of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen atoms present in the compound.

Step 1: Calculate the moles of CO2 produced:
To do this, divide the given mass of CO2 (0.6322g) by its molar mass (44.01 g/mol), using the equation:
moles of CO2 = mass of CO2 / molar mass of CO2

Step 2: Calculate the moles of H2O produced:
Similarly, divide the given mass of H2O (0.2588g) by its molar mass (18.02 g/mol), using the equation:
moles of H2O = mass of H2O / molar mass of H2O

Step 3: Determine the moles of carbon and hydrogen:
Since the original substance, butanoic acid, contains only carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen, we can assume that the total moles of carbon and hydrogen atoms will be equal to the moles of CO2 and H2O formed. This is due to the law of conservation of mass in a chemical reaction.

Step 4: Calculate the moles of carbon:
moles of carbon = moles of CO2

Step 5: Calculate the moles of hydrogen:
moles of hydrogen = 2 × moles of H2O
(Note: Each water molecule contains 2 hydrogen atoms.)

Step 6: Calculate the moles of oxygen:
Now, since the empirical formula of butanoic acid does not contain any significant O2 molecules, we can find the remaining moles of oxygen by subtracting the moles of carbon plus the moles of hydrogen from the total moles of oxygen in CO2 and H2O.
moles of oxygen = (moles of CO2 + moles of H2O) - (moles of carbon + moles of hydrogen)

Step 7: Determine the simplest whole number ratio:
Divide the moles of each element (carbon, hydrogen, oxygen) by the smallest mole value obtained in Step 6. Round off these values to the nearest whole number. This will give us the simplest whole number ratio of atoms in the compound.

Step 8: Write the empirical formula:
Write the empirical formula using the whole number ratios obtained in Step 7. The subscripts for each element in the empirical formula represent the number of atoms present in one molecule of butanoic acid.

Following these steps will allow you to determine the empirical formula of butanoic acid.