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Concept
Alkyl group
Summary
In organic chemistry, an alkyl group is an alkane missing one hydrogen.
The term alkyl is intentionally unspecific to include many possible substitutions.
An acyclic alkyl has the general formula of . A cycloalkyl group is derived from a cycloalkane by removal of a hydrogen atom from a ring and has the general formula .
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 .
Alkylation is an important operation in refineries, for example in the production of high-octane gasoline.
Alkylating antineoplastic agents are a class of compounds that are used to treat cancer. In such case, the term alkyl is used loosely. For example, nitrogen mustards are well-known alkylating agents, but they are not simple hydrocarbons.
In chemistry, alkyl is a group, a substituent, that is attached to other molecular fragments. For example, alkyl lithium reagents have the empirical formula Li(alkyl), where alkyl = methyl, ethyl, etc. A dialkyl ether is an ether with two alkyl groups, e.g., diethyl ether .
In medicinal chemistry, the incorporation of alkyl chains into some chemical compounds increases their lipophilicity. This strategy has been used to increase the antimicrobial activity of flavanones and chalcones.
Usually, alkyl groups are attached to other atoms or groups of atoms. Free alkyls occur as neutral compounds, as anions, or as cations. The cations are called carbocations. The anions are called carbanions. The neutral alkyl free radicals have no special name. Such species are usually encountered only as transient intermediates, but some are quite stable and can be "put into a bottle". Typically alkyl cations are generated using super acids, alkyl anions are observed in the presence of strong bases, and alkyl radicals are generated by a photochemical reaction. Alkyls are commonly observed in mass spectrometry of organic compounds. Simple alkyls (especially methyl) are observed in the interstellar space as well.
Official source
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