Furthermore, "O" and "U" would result in awkward pronunciations.Īlcohol: Look for the "C-O-H" in "Alcohol."Įther: Ethers were anesthetics used in the 1800s. The letters "I", "O", and "U" are not used. Vowels: Remember the vowels "A", "E", and "Y" for Alkane, Alkene, and Alkyne. These are possible mnemonics for the common functional groups. They have both common names and IUPAC names. The first carbon after the carbon that attaches to the functional group is called the alpha carbon.Īlcohol containing two hydroxyl groups are called glycols.
And all of these are called radicals, by a meaning of the term radical that predates the free radical. When the group of atoms is associated with the rest of the molecule primarily by ionic forces, the group is referred to more properly as a polyatomic ion or complex ion. The non-hydrogen atoms of functional groups are always associated with each by covalent bonds, as well as with the rest of the molecule. Note: The table above is adapted from the Functional Groups table on Wikipedia.Ĭombining the names of functional groups with the names of the parent alkanes generates a powerful systematic nomenclature for naming organic compounds. In organic chemistry functional groups are submolecular structural motifs, characterized by specific elemental composition and connectivity, that confer reactivity upon the molecule that contains them. Again, using the French analogy, it's like trying to ignore learning the vocabulary and then picking up a novel in French and expecting to be able to read it.įunctional groups containing. If you choose to move on without learning the "lingo", then you're not going to understand the language of the chapters to come. Once you have the minimal list above memorized backwards and forwards, you're ready to move on. Writing is a good technique to help you memorize, because it is more active than simply reading.
Then try going through and looking at the structures and naming them. To test yourself, try going through your cards and looking at the names and then drawing their structure on a sheet of paper. Say and write the names and draw the structures. But the above list will give you what you need to continue on.Īnd don't just look at the cards. Every functional group below is eventually discussed at one point or another in the book. After you've learned all these, add a couple more cards and learn those. Your initial set of cards should include, at the very least: Alkene, Alkyne, Alkyl halide (or Haloalkane), Alcohol, Aldehyde, Ketone, Carboxylic Acid, Acyl Chloride (or Acid Chloride), Ester, Ether, Amine, Sulfide, and Thiol. Get a pack of index cards and write the name of the functional group on one side, and draw its chemical representation on the other.įor now, a list of the most important ones you should know is provided here. One of the easiest ways to learn functional groups is by making flash cards. It's like trying to learn French without first learning the meaning of some of the words. It's simply impossible to discuss chemistry without knowing the "lingo". It will be assumed that the student is familiar with most of the ones in the tables below. As you proceed through the text, the writing will be in terms of functional groups. Memorizing Functional Groups ĭon't assume that you can simply skim over the functional groups and move on. Organic reactions usually take place at the functional group, so learning about the reactivities of functional groups will prepare you to understand many other things about organic chemistry. An -OH group on one molecule will tend to react similarly, although perhaps not identically, to an -OH on another molecule. Just as elements have distinctive properties, functional groups have characteristic chemistries. It could be found on any number of different molecules. A functional group makes up part of a larger molecule.įor example, -OH, the hydroxyl group that characterizes alcohols, is an oxygen with a hydrogen attached. The identification of functional groups and the ability to predict reactivity based on functional group properties is one of the cornerstones of organic chemistry.įunctional groups are specific atoms, ions, or groups of atoms having consistent properties. These parts of organic molecules are called functional groups. Fortunately, organic chemicals consist of a relatively few similar parts, combined in different ways, that allow us to predict how a compound we have never seen before may react, by comparing how other molecules containing the same types of parts are known to react. In fact, there are many times more organic compounds known than all the other (inorganic) compounds discovered so far, about 7 million organic compounds in total. The number of known organic compounds is quite large.