We have seen countless examples of stereoisomers, such as enantiomers and diastereomers, which arise due to different absolute configurations of chiral centers. We learned that chiral centers are only possible when the carbon is connected to four different groups, which … Read more
When talking about Newman projections, we saw that the free rotation about single bonds changes the spatial arrangement of atoms in the molecule. As a result of these rotations, different conformations of molecules are possible. For example, two groups interchange … Read more
Alkenes are the second group of hydrocarbons and differ from alkanes in that they have a double bond. The presence of a double bond brings up some important structural and functional changes. Let’s first mention that the C=C double bonds … Read more
E/Z and Cis/Trans Alkenes In the previous post, we discussed the cis and trans designations of alkenes. As a recap, cis and trans stereoisomerism depend on whether two identical alkyl groups on the c=c bond are on the same or opposite sides of that double … Read more
Cis and Trans Alkenes Alkenes can be stereoisomeric even though this is slightly different than what we learn about enantiomers and diastereomers containing chirality centers. For example, let’s try to determine the relationship between molecules in each of the following … Read more
Naming alkenes follows the same rules we discussed earlier for the IUPAC nomenclature rules for alkanes. This is a brief summary of the steps: Step 1. Identify the parent chain. Step 2. Identify the substituents. Step 3. Number the parent chain. Step 4. … Read more
