Organic Chemistry - Alkane Nomenclature and Conformations Flashcards

Vocabulary flashcards covering alkane nomenclature, substituent classifications, carbon types, and conformational representations based on lecture notes.

Isoalkanes

Alkanes having the same number of carbon atoms as a linear alkane, but featuring one branch at the end of the chain.

Methylene group

A $\text{CH}_2$ group within an alkane structure.

Methyl group

A $\text{CH}_3$ group attached as a substituent or terminal unit in an organic molecule.

Generic Molecular Formula for Linear Alkanes

$\text{C}_n\text{H}_{2n+2}$, where $n$ represents the total number of carbon atoms in an unbranched hydrocarbon.

IUPAC Nomenclature

A standardized, systematic system of naming organic chemical structures unambiguously so that one unique name corresponds to exactly one molecular structure.

Substituent

An atom or group of atoms that replaces a hydrogen atom on an alkane or parent carbon chain.

Ethyl group

A two-carbon alkyl substituent derived from ethane ($\text{CH}_2\text{CH}_3$).

Propyl group

A straight-chain three-carbon alkyl substituent ($\text{CH}_2\text{CH}_2\text{CH}_3$).

Isopropyl group

A branched three-carbon alkyl group attached to the parent carbon chain through its central carbon atom.

Sec-butyl group

A four-carbon alkyl substituent attached to the main parent chain via its secondary carbon atom.

Tert-butyl group

A highly branched four-carbon alkyl substituent in which a central carbon atom is bonded to three methyl groups and attached to the main chain.

Primary Carbon

A carbon atom directly bonded to only one other carbon atom.

Secondary Carbon

A carbon atom directly bonded to two other carbon atoms.

Tertiary Carbon

A carbon atom directly bonded to three other carbon atoms.

Quaternary Carbon

A carbon atom directly bonded to four other carbon atoms.

Complex Substituent

A large or branched substituent that requires its own systematic numbering and naming inside parentheses when designated on a parent chain.

Conformations

The distinct three-dimensional spatial arrangements of atoms in a molecule that result from rotation around single (\text{\textsigma}) bonds.

Newman Projection

A two-dimensional representation for viewing a chemical bond straight down its carbon-carbon single bond axis to observe conformational relationships between front and back carbon substituents.