introduction to organic chemistry Flashcards
what can carbon form
carbon can form rings and very long chains, which can be branched
why can carbon form rings ad very long branches
a carbon atom has four electrons in its outer shell, so it forms four covalent bonds
carbon-carbon bonds are relatively string (347 KJ MOL^-1) and non-polar
what other carbon bond is strong
the carbon-hydrogen bond is also strong (413 KJ mol^-1) and relatively non-polar.
hydrocarbon chains form the skeleton of most organic compounds
what were organic compounds originally thought to be
organic compounds were originally thought to be produced by living things only. this was disapproved by Friedrich Wohler in 1828.
what happens in all stable carbon compounds
in all stable carbon compounds, carbon forms four covalent bonds and has eight electrons in its outer shell
what are the different ways carbon forms bonds
by forming four single bonds as an alkane
by forming two single bonds and one double bond as an alkene
by forming one single bond and one triple bond as an alkyne
what are the different types of formula
General formula
Empirical formula
Molecular formula
structural formula
skeletal formula
displayed formula
define general formula
an algebraic formula that can describe any member of compounds
define the empirical formula
the simplest ratio of atoms of each element in a compound
define molecular formula
the actual number of atoms of each element in a molecule
define structural formula
shows the bonds of the carbon skeleton only, with any functional groups
the hydrogen and carbon atoms arent shown
this is handy for drawing large complicated structures, like cyclic hydrocarbons
define displayed formula
shows how all the atoms are arranged and all the bonds between them
define the homologous series
a homologous series is a group of compounds that contain the same functional group.
they can all be represented by the same general formula
what can you use the general formula for
you can use the general formula to work out the molecular formula of any member of a homologous series
each successive number of a homologous series differes by a CH2 group
what are the main homologous series
alkanes
branched alkanes
alkenes
halogenalkanes
alcohols
aldehydes
ketones
carboxylic acids
esters
amines
amides
acyl chlorides
cycloalkanes
arenes
since electrons are negatively charged what do they do during reactions
as electrons are negatively charged they tend to move from areas of high electron density to more positively charged areas.
how is the movement of electrons shown in a formula
The movement of a pair of electrons is shown by a curly arrow that starts from a lone pair of electrons or from a covalent bond and moves towards the positively charged area of a molecule to form a new bond
explain what a free radical is and how they occur
sometimes a covalent bond may break in such a way that one electron goes to each atom that originally formed the bond
these fragments of the original molecule have an unpaired electron and are called free radicals
they are usually extremely reactive
what does IUPAC stand for
international union of pure and applied chemistry
