7.1.3

Alkanes

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Alkanes

Hydrocarbons are organic compounds made of carbon and hydrogen. Hydrocarbons are the dominant compounds in crude oil. Most of these hydrocarbons are alkanes.

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Alkane structure

  • In alkanes, carbon atoms bond to four atoms (hydrogen or carbon).
  • We call them saturated hydrocarbons as all their bonds with other atoms are single bonds.
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Alkane uses

  • Alkanes have quite low reactivity, but they combust quite well.
    • This makes them useful as fuels.
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General formula

  • Alkanes have the general formula CnH(2n+2)
    • E.g. if a hydrocarbon contained 7 carbon atoms, the number of hydrogen atoms would be (2 x 7) + 2 = 16
  • So, the formula for the hydrocarbon shown in the image would be C7H16

Jump to other topics

1Atomic Structure

2Chemical Bonding

3Quantitative Chemistry

4Chemical Changes

5Energy Changes

6The Rate & Extent of Chemical Change

7Organic Chemistry

8Chemical Analysis

9Chemistry of the Atmosphere

10Using Resources

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