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Organic compound
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Some chemical authorities define an organic
compound as a chemical compound that contains
a carbon–hydrogen or carbon–carbon bond;
others consider an organic compound to be any
chemical compound that contains carbon. For
example, carbon-containing compounds such as
alkanes (e.g. methane CH4) and its derivatives are
universally considered organic, but many others
are sometimes considered inorganic, such as
certain compounds of carbon with nitrogen and
oxygen (e.g. cyanide ion CN−, hydrogen cyanide
HCN, chloroformic acid ClCO2H, carbon dioxide
CO2, and carbonate ion CO2−
3 ).
[citation needed]
Methane (CH4) is among the
simplest organic compounds.
Due to carbon's ability to catenate (form chains
with other carbon atoms), millions of organic
compounds are known. The study of the
properties, reactions, and syntheses of organic
compounds comprise the discipline known as
organic chemistry. For historical reasons, a few
classes of carbon-containing compounds (e.g.,
carbonate salts and cyanide salts), along with a
few other exceptions (e.g., carbon dioxide, and
even hydrogen cyanide despite the fact it contains
a carbon–hydrogen bond), are generally
considered inorganic. Other than those just
named, little consensus exists among chemists on
precisely which carbon-containing compounds are
excluded, making any rigorous definition of an
organic compound elusive.[1]
Although organic compounds make up only a
small percentage of Earth's crust, they are of
central importance because all known life is based
on organic compounds. Living things incorporate
inorganic carbon compounds into organic
compounds through a network of processes (the
carbon cycle) that begins with the conversion of
carbon dioxide and a hydrogen source like water
into simple sugars and other organic molecules by
autotrophic organisms using light (photosynthesis)
or other sources of energy. Most synthetically-
produced organic compounds are ultimately
derived from petrochemicals consisting mainly of
hydrocarbons, which are themselves formed from
the high pressure and temperature degradation of
organic matter underground over geological
timescales.[2] This ultimate derivation
notwithstanding, organic compounds are no longer
defined as compounds originating in living things,
as they were historically.
In chemical nomenclature, an organyl group,
frequently represented by the letter R, refers to
any monovalent substituent whose open valence
is on a carbon atom.[3]
Definition
History
Classification
Databases
Structure determination
See also
References
External links
Last edited 2 days ago by BlatantContradicti…
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Inorganic compound
Chemical compound without any
carbon-hydrogen bonds
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