Organic Compounds:Naming and Isomerism

Types of htdrocarbons

At the beginning of the 19^th century, compounds obtained from plants and animals were regarded as organic compounds.

Organic compounds that contain both hydrogen and carbon are called hydrocarbons. These are parent fundamental compounds.

Classification of hydrocarbons

Hydrocarbons are classified on the basis of their structure and bonding.

The given figure shows the classification of hydrocarbons.

Open chain hydrocarbons - An open chain is an arrangement of atoms that does not form a ring, i.e. it has two open ends. It may consist of straight or branched chain compounds.

Open chain hydrocarbons are again classified into two sub-groups.

(a) Saturated open chain hydrocarbons - The saturated (contains only single bonds) open chain hydrocarbons form a homologous series called the paraffin series or the alkane series.

Their formula can be summarised as C_nH_{2n+ 2}, where n is the number of carbon atoms in the molecule.

Examples- Methane (CH₄), ethane (C₂H₆),propane (C₃H₈), Butane (C₄H₁₀)

Do You Know? Alkanes are also known as 'paraffins'. The word ‘paraffin’, which is derived from a Latin word meaning "little activity", means that such compounds are very unreactive.

(b) Unsaturated open chain hydrocarbons - Unsaturated open chain hydrocarbons include the alkene or olefin series, the diene series and the alkyne series.

1. Alkene: The alkene series consists of chain hydrocarbons that contain a double bond between two carbon atoms. The general formula for the series is C_nH_2n, where n is the number of carbon atoms.

Examples:…