Alcohols (1) – Nomenclature and Properties
Alcohol Nomenclature, Properties, and Structure In this next series of posts we are going to discuss the reactions of alcohols. As a functional group, alcohols
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Bond Dissociation Energies = Homolytic Cleavage
Here’s a point which causes a lot of confusion. Look at these two reactions. What do you think is the stronger bond, O-H or C-H?
Read more3 Factors That Stabilize Free Radicals
What Factors Affect Free-Radical Stability? In the last post we introduced free radicals – neutral, electron-deficient chemical species with a partially filled orbital – and
Read moreBond Strengths And Radical Stability
Bond Strengths And Radical Stability The last two posts have discussed factors which stabilize – and destabilize – free radials. So how do we quantify
Read moreThe E1 Reaction
Last time in this walkthrough on elimination reactions, we talked about two types of elimination reactions. In this post, we’re going to dig a little bit
Read moreTwo Types of Substitution Reactions
Chemistry is an experimental science. There is no great Ramanujan of our discipline, who, starting with a simple set of premises, could derive and predict
Read more3 Factors That Stabilize Carbocations
Three main factors increase the stability of carbocations: Increasing the number of adjacent carbon atoms: methyl (least stable carbocation) < primary < secondary < tertiary (most
Read morePrimary, Secondary, Tertiary, Quaternary In Organic Chemistry
Organic chemists, with carbon chemistry as their subject, have developed all kinds of shorthand phrases to describe structures and phenomena that might otherwise take a
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