Question

The prime factorization of 48 is?

Answer 1

To find the prime factorization of 48, we can start by dividing it by the smallest prime number, which is 2.

48 divided by 2 equals 24.

Now, we can continue to divide 24 by 2.

24 divided by 2 equals 12.

Next, we divide 12 by 2 again.

12 divided by 2 equals 6.

Finally, we divide 6 by 2 one last time.

6 divided by 2 equals 3.

Since 3 is a prime number, we have now completed the prime factorization of 48.

Therefore, the prime factorization of 48 is 2 x 2 x 2 x 2 x 3, or in exponential form, 2^4 x 3.