ChemistryCode 5070
Formulae, functional groups and terminology
What this topic asks you to be able to do
- State that a structural formula is a clear, unambiguous depiction of how a molecule's atoms are laid out, including CH2=CH2, CH3CH2OH, CH3COOCH3
- Draw and interpret a molecule's displayed formula so that it shows every atom and every bond.
- Write and interpret the general formula that the compounds of one homologous series share, limited to: (a) CnH2n+2 for alkanes (b) CnH2n for alkenes (c) CnH2n+1OH for alcohols (d) CnH2n+1COOH for carboxylic acids
- Define structural isomers as compounds that share a molecular formula but whose structural formulae differ, including C4H10, with the isomers CH3CH2CH2CH3 and CH3CH(CH3)CH3, and C4H8, with the isomers CH3CH2CH=CH2 and CH3CH=CHCH3
- Identify a functional group as an atom, or a group of atoms, that gives a homologous series its chemical properties
- Describe the general characteristics shared by the members of a homologous series: they (a) have the same functional group (b) share one general formula (c) differ from the next member by a –CH2– unit (d) show a trend in their physical properties (e) have similar chemical properties
- State that in a saturated compound's molecules, every carbon–carbon bond is a single bond
- State that the molecules of an unsaturated compound contain at least one carbon–carbon bond that is not a single bond