Functional groups

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Learning about the common organic functional groups and how they affect the properties of organic molecules.

Introduction to Functional Groups: Functional groups are specific groups of atoms that often determine the reactivity and physical properties of organic molecules. This topic covers the basic definition and importance of functional groups in organic chemistry.
Alkanes: Alkanes are hydrocarbons that contain only single bonds between carbon atoms. This topic covers the physical and chemical properties of alkanes, and their naming and nomenclature.
Alkenes: Alkenes are hydrocarbons that contain a carbon-carbon double bond. This topic covers the physical and chemical properties of alkenes, as well as their naming, nomenclature, and reactions.
Alkynes: Alkynes are hydrocarbons that contain a carbon-carbon triple bond. This topic covers the physical and chemical properties of alkynes, as well as their naming, nomenclature, and reactions.
Aromatics: Aromatics are organic compounds that contain an aromatic ring, which is a ring of atoms with alternating double bonds. This topic covers the physical and chemical properties of aromatics, their naming and nomenclature, and reactions.
Alcohols: Alcohols are organic compounds that contain a hydroxyl (-OH) functional group. This topic covers the physical and chemical properties of alcohols, their naming and nomenclature, and reactions.
Phenols: Phenols are organic compounds that contain a hydroxyl (-OH) functional group attached to an aromatic ring. This topic covers the physical and chemical properties of phenols, their naming and nomenclature, and reactions.
Ethers: Ethers are organic compounds that contain an oxygen atom bonded to two alkyl or aryl groups. This topic covers the physical and chemical properties of ethers, their naming and nomenclature, and reactions.
Aldehydes and Ketones: Aldehydes and ketones are organic compounds that contain a carbonyl functional group (-C=O). This topic covers the physical and chemical properties of aldehydes and ketones, their naming and nomenclature, and reactions.
Carboxylic Acids: Carboxylic acids are organic compounds that contain a carboxyl functional group (-COOH). This topic covers the physical and chemical properties of carboxylic acids, their naming and nomenclature, and reactions.
Esters: Esters are organic compounds that contain a carbonyl functional group (-C=O) bonded to an alkyl or aryl group and an oxygen atom. This topic covers the physical and chemical properties of esters, their naming and nomenclature, and reactions.
Amides: Amides are organic compounds that contain a carbonyl functional group (-C=O) bonded to a nitrogen atom. This topic covers the physical and chemical properties of amides, their naming and nomenclature, and reactions.
Amines: Amines are organic compounds that contain a nitrogen atom bonded to one, two, or three alkyl or aryl groups. This topic covers the physical and chemical properties of amines, their naming and nomenclature, and reactions.
Heterocycles: Heterocycles are organic compounds that contain a ring of atoms containing at least one heteroatom, such as oxygen, nitrogen, or sulfur. This topic covers the physical and chemical properties of heterocycles, their naming and nomenclature, and reactions.
Polymers: Polymers are large molecules made up of repeating units, often formed from monomers containing one or more functional groups. This topic covers the physical and chemical properties of polymers, and their synthesis and applications.
Spectroscopic Techniques: Spectroscopic techniques, such as infrared spectroscopy and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy, are used to identify functional groups and determine molecular structure. This topic covers the basic principles and applications of spectroscopic techniques in organic chemistry.
Biochemistry: Functional groups play a crucial role in biochemistry, and the study of biological molecules and their functions is an important aspect of organic chemistry. This topic covers the basic principles and applications of biochemistry in organic chemistry.
Alkyl group: A group of atoms derived from an alkane, consisting of carbon and hydrogen atoms.
Alkenyl group: A group of atoms derived from an alkene, consisting of a carbon-carbon double bond and hydrogen atoms.
Alkynyl group: A group of atoms derived from an alkyne, consisting of a carbon-carbon triple bond and hydrogen atoms.
Aryl group: A group of atoms derived from an aromatic compound, consisting of a planar ring of carbon atoms with alternating double bonds.
Aldehyde group: A group of atoms consisting of a carbon atom double-bonded to oxygen and single-bonded to a hydrogen atom.
Ketone group: A group of atoms consisting of a carbon atom double-bonded to an oxygen atom between two other carbon atoms.
Carboxylic acid group: A group of atoms consisting of a carbon atom double-bonded to an oxygen atom and single-bonded to a hydroxy group (-OH).
Ester group: A group of atoms consisting of a carbon atom single-bonded to an oxygen atom and bonded to an alkyl or aryl group by a second oxygen atom.
Amide group: A group of atoms consisting of a carbon atom single-bonded to an oxygen atom and bonded to a nitrogen atom by a second bond.
Imine group: A group of atoms consisting of a carbon atom double-bonded to a nitrogen atom.
Nitro group: A group of atoms consisting of a nitrogen atom bonded to two oxygen atoms.
Hydroxyl group: A group of atoms consisting of an oxygen atom bonded to a hydrogen atom (-OH).
Thiol group: A group of atoms consisting of a sulfur atom bonded to a hydrogen atom (-SH).
Amino group: A group of atoms consisting of a nitrogen atom bonded to two hydrogen atoms (-NH2).
Phosphate group: A group of atoms consisting of a phosphorous atom bonded to four oxygen atoms.
"A functional group is a substituent or moiety in a molecule that causes the molecule's characteristic chemical reactions."
"Same functional group will undergo the same or similar chemical reactions regardless of the rest of the molecule's composition."
"Functional group interconversion can be used in retrosynthetic analysis to plan organic synthesis."
"The atoms in a functional group are linked to each other and to the rest of the molecule by covalent bonds."
"For repeating units of polymers, functional groups attach to their nonpolar core of carbon atoms and thus add chemical character to carbon chains."
"Functional groups can also be charged, e.g. in carboxylate salts (–COO−), which turns the molecule into a polyatomic ion or a complex ion."
"Functional groups binding to a central atom in a coordination complex are called ligands."
"Complexation and solvation are also caused by specific interactions of functional groups."
"In the common rule of thumb 'like dissolves like', it is the shared or mutually well-interacting functional groups which give rise to solubility."
"Sugar dissolves in water because both share the hydroxyl functional group (–OH) and hydroxyls interact strongly with each other."
"When functional groups are more electronegative than atoms they attach to, the functional groups will become polar, and the otherwise nonpolar molecules containing these functional groups become polar and so become soluble in some aqueous environment."
"Combining the names of functional groups with the names of the parent alkanes generates what is termed a systematic nomenclature for naming organic compounds."
"The first carbon atom after the carbon that attaches to the functional group is called the alpha carbon."
"IUPAC conventions call for numeric labeling of the position, e.g. 4-aminobutanoic acid."
"In traditional names various qualifiers are used to label isomers, for example, isopropanol (IUPAC name: propan-2-ol) is an isomer of n-propanol (propan-1-ol)."
"A functional group is a group of atoms in a molecule with distinctive chemical properties, regardless of the other atoms in the molecule. A moiety is an entire 'half' of a molecule, which can be not only a single functional group, but also a larger unit consisting of multiple functional groups."
"For example, an 'aryl moiety' may be any group containing an aromatic ring, regardless of how many functional groups the said aryl has."
"This enables systematic prediction of chemical reactions and behavior of chemical compounds and the design of chemical synthesis."
"The reactivity of a functional group can be modified by other functional groups nearby."
"The same functional group will undergo the same or similar chemical reactions regardless of the rest of the molecule's composition. This enables systematic prediction of chemical reactions and behavior of chemical compounds and the design of chemical synthesis."