Introduction to Organic Chemistry

• Addition Reaction - a reaction where a molecule joins to an unsaturated molecule to produce a saturated molecule
• Aliphatic - Organic compounds containing C chains and branches only, no functional groups
• Aromatic - Organic compound that contains a benzene ring
• Carbocation - a positive ion with the positive charges on a C atom
• Cyclic - organic compounds containing rings of carbon atoms but no benzene rings
• Dehydration - elimination of water
• Dehydrogenation - elimination of hydrogen
• Electrophile - Lone pair acceptor
• Elimination reaction - reaction when a molecule is lost from a saturated molecule to form an unsaturated molecule
• Free radical - Species with an unpaired electron
• Functional group - The atom or group of atoms that is responsible for most of the chemical reactions of a molecule
• Homologous series - A family of compounds with the same general formula and similar chemical properties. In a series, each member differs by the addition of CH2 group and there is a gradual change in physical properties
• Hydration - addition of water
• Hydrocarbon - A compound containing only hydrogen and carbon atoms.
• Hydrogenation - addition of hydrogen
• Hydrolysis - a reaction involving the breaking of bonds due to reaction with water
• Organic Chemistry - Study of compounds containing carbon
• Saturated - molecules containing no double bonds
• Stereoisomers - molecules with the same molecular formula and structural formula but a different spatial arrangement of atoms
• Geometric Isomers - A type of stereoisomerism, molecules which have different arrangements of groups around C=C
• Optical Isomers - Type of stereoisomerism, molecules are non superimposable mirror images
• Structural isomerism - molecules with the same molecular formula but different structures
• Chain isomerism - type of structural isomerism, with different carbon chains
• Position Isomerism - type of structural isomerism, the functional group is in a different location
• Functional group isomers - type of structural isomerism, where the functional group is different
• Substitution Reaction - reaction in which an atom or group is replaced with another atom or group
• Unsaturated - molecules containing double bond(s)
• Molecular Formula - formula that gives the actual number of atoms of each element in one molecule eg. C4H10
• Empirical Formula - formula that gives the simplest ration of atoms of each element in a compound eg. C2H5
• General Formula - shows how much of each element there is in a molecule relative to nC atoms eg. CnHn+2
• Structural Formula - a formula that shows how the atoms are joined together in a molecule eg. CH3CH2CH2CH3
• Displayed formula - shows every single bond in a molecule
• Skeletal formula - Uses lines to represent bonds without displaying all atoms (everything but C and H are labeled)
• Order of importance for functional groups:

  carboxylic acids > nitriles > aldehydes > ketones > alcohols > amines > alkenes > halogenoalkanes
• Functional group isomer pairs:

  1. Aldehydes and Ketones
  2. Carboxylic Acids and Esters
  3. Cycloalkanes and Alkenes