In an #"aldehyde"#, WHERE does the #"carbonyl"# function lie?

1 Answer
anor277
Dec 22, 2016

At the END of a hydrocarbyl chain........

Explanation:

An #"aldehyde"# contains the #R-C(=O)H# and thus is has to be at a chain terminus. On the other hand, a carbonyl group that is flanked by 2 alkyl groups (or non-hydrogen) groups is a #"ketone"#. #"Aldehydes"# tend to be much more reactive than ketones in that steric access to the carbonyl centre is greatly improved.

Related questions
See all questions in Functional Groups and Naming
Impact of this question
2178 views around the world
You can reuse this answer
Creative Commons License