Naming Alkanes – Worksheet 1

Introduction to Naming Alkanes

Alkanes are a type of hydrocarbon. This means that they are made up of only carbon and hydrogen atoms. They are the simplest molecules of all hydrocarbons, and they are very common in everyday life. Naming alkanes is an important part of understanding organic chemistry. To do this, you must learn the rules for naming the various alkanes.

The Rules for Naming Alkanes

The first step in naming alkanes is to determine the longest carbon chain in the molecule. This is the parent chain, and all other atoms or groups of atoms are attached to this chain. The parent chain is then named using the root of the alkane name and a suffix that indicates the number of carbon atoms in the chain. For example, a parent chain with four carbon atoms is named butane.

Once the parent chain has been named, any additional atoms or groups of atoms are attached to the parent chain. These are known as substituents. Each substituent is named separately and is added to the alkane name. For example, if the molecule has an ethyl group (C2H5) attached to the butane chain, the name of the molecule is ethylbutane.

Naming Alkanes Worksheet 1

This worksheet provides practice in naming alkanes. It contains a series of molecules with different numbers of carbon atoms and different types of substituents. If you look closely, you can see the parent chain and the substituents. Use the rules for naming alkanes to determine the correct name for each molecule.