hey ksitna,
here's how to deal with these questions,
first, find the numer of moles of the sulphate ions which is >>>> 17.1/342 = 0.05 moles
then multply this mole number with the avogadro's constant and 3. ( 3 is the number of sulphates given in the question >> Al2(SO4)"3" )
so, it goes this way,
moles of sulphate = 0.05 moles
number of sulphate ions present = 0.05 x (6x10 raised 23) x 3
= 9x10 raised 22
Answer is "D"
this is the final answer, hope i helped u, if there is anything else, feel free to ask
good luck this thursday !!