Organic Chemistry Dictionary
by Rafal Dittwald
- Alicyclic hydrocarbons
- Hydrocarbons that have a structures based on
rings of carbon atoms
- Aliphatic compound
- A hydrocarbon containing carbon atoms in straight or branched chains or
non-aromatic rings; includes alkanes, alkenes and alkynes
- Alkane
- A hydrocarbon with only single bonds between
carbon atoms; general formula: CnH2n+2
- e.g.
- Alkene
- A hydrocarbon with at least one carbon-to-carbon
double bond; general formula: CnH2n
- e.g.
- Alkyl group
- A hydrocarbon group derived from an alkane by
the removal of a hydrogen atom; often a substitution group or branch on an
organic molecule
- Alkyne
- A hydrocarbon with at least one carbon-to-carbon
triple bond; general formula: CnH2n-2
- e.g.
- Aromatic compound
- A hydrocarbon containing one or more benzene (C6H6 (l))
ring structures
- e.g.
- Calorimetry
- The technological process of measuring energy changes in chemical systems
- Combustion
- The reaction of a substance with oxygen, producing oxides and energy
- Complete combustion
- The reaction of an element or compound with oxygen to produce the most
common oxides, e.g. carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, and
water
- Cycloalkane
- A class of alicyclic hydrocarbons, alkanes that
form ring structures; general formula: CnH2n (same
as alkenes)
- e.g.
- Endothermic
- Changes involving a decrease in the temperature of the surroundings; energy
is transferred as heat from the surroundings to a chemical system
- Exothermic
- Changes involving an increase in the temperature of the surroundings; energy
is transferred as heat from a chemical system to the surroundings
- Expanded molecular formula
- A detailed molecular formula showing the
arrangement of atoms within the molecule
- e.g. CH3CH2CH2CH2CH3 (pentane)
- Fossil fuel
- Fuel consisting of the remains of organisms preserved in rocks in the earth's
crust, primarily hydrocarbons
- Geometric isomer
- Compounds with the same molecular formula and
structure, but different arrangement of groups around the double bond
- Cis isomer
- Both same groups are on the same side of the double bond
- e.g.
- Trans isomer
- The two same groups are on opposite sides of the double bond
- e.g.
- Homologous series
- A formula series in which the formula of each member differs from that
of the preceding member in a consistent, regular way
- Hydrocarbon
- An organic compound that contains only
carbon and hydrogen atoms
- Incomplete combustion
- The reaction of an element or compound with oxygen to produce some oxides
with less oxygen content than the most common oxides, e.g. carbon monoxide
and nitrogen monoxide
- Inorganic compounds
- Compounds obtained from mineral sources, do not contain carbon
- Kinetic Energy
- The energy that a body has due to its motion
- Molecular formula
- A chemical formula that shows the number and kinds of atoms in a molecule
- e.g. C5H12 (pentane)
- Monomer
- The smallest repeating unit of a polymer
- Organic chemistry
- The study of organic compounds
- Organic compounds
- Compounds containing carbon, except CO(g), CO2 (g),
and ionic compounds with carbon
- Polymer
- A long-chain molecule made up of many small identical units (monomers)
- Potential Energy
- The energy that a body has due to its position; stored energy
- Refining
- The physical and/or chemical process that converts complete organic mixtures
into simpler mixtures or purified substances
- Saturated hydrocarbons
- Hydrocarbons with only single bonds in their
molecules; containing a maximum number of hydrogen atoms
- e.g.
- Structural diagram
- A two-dimensional visual representation of the complete structure of a
molecule
- e.g.
- Structural isomer
- Compounds with the same molecular formula,
but different molecular structures (e.g. alkenes and cycloalkanes)
- e.g.
and 
- Unsaturated hydrocarbon
- A reactive hydrocarbon whose molecules contain
double and triple covalent bonds between carbon atoms; e. g. alkenes and alkynes
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