Alkyl group

Isopropyl group
Methyl group

In organic chemistry, an alkyl group is an alkane missing one hydrogen.[1] The term alkyl is intentionally unspecific to include many possible substitutions. An acyclic alkyl has the general formula of −CnH2n+1. A cycloalkyl group is derived from a cycloalkane by removal of a hydrogen atom from a ring and has the general formula −CnH2n−1.[2] Typically an alkyl is a part of a larger molecule. In structural formulae, the symbol R is used to designate a generic (unspecified) alkyl group. The smallest alkyl group is methyl, with the formula −CH3.[3]

  1. ^ IUPAC, Compendium of Chemical Terminology, 2nd ed. (the "Gold Book") (1997). Online corrected version: (2006–) "alkyl groups". doi:10.1351/goldbook.A00228
  2. ^ IUPAC, Compendium of Chemical Terminology, 2nd ed. (the "Gold Book") (1997). Online corrected version: (2006–) "cycloalkyl groups". doi:10.1351/goldbook.C01498
  3. ^ Virtual Textbook of Organic Chemistry Naming Organic Compounds Archived 2016-05-21 at the Portuguese Web Archive