Dabour Hub EGEgyptian Curriculum 2026/2027
Structural formula

Structural formula

Point 6 of 15 — Lesson 1: Introduction to Organic Chemistry, Wöhler’s Synthesis and AlkanesQuestion bank: 25 questions (25 with pictures)

06 Structural formula

The structural formula shows the number and kind of atoms and how they are linked by covalent bonds. In organic compounds the valency of each element is constant: carbon is tetravalent (4 bonds), hydrogen is monovalent (1), oxygen is divalent (2), nitrogen is trivalent (3), halogens are monovalent. Each single bond = one valence unit. So every carbon in a structural formula must have exactly four bonds around it.

Examples: C₂H₆ is CH₃–CH₃; CH₄O is CH₃–OH; C₂H₄ is CH₂=CH₂; C₂H₂ is HC≡CH; C₂H₄Cl₂ can be CH₃–CHCl₂ or ClCH₂–CH₂Cl.

The structural formula is better than the molecular formula because one molecular formula can stand for several different compounds; only the structural formula tells which one is meant and explains its properties.

📝 Question bank for this point

25 questions linked to this point only, 25 of them with pictures.