Organic and Biological Compounds

A.  Organic Compounds

1.  Organic compounds contain carbon

2.  Some exceptions that have carbon, but are not considered organic:

a.  Carbon monoxide & carbon dioxide

b.  Carbonates

3.  90% of all compounds are organic

4.  Reasons why carbon forms so many compounds

a.  Carbon can form 4 bonds

b.  Carbon can form single, double, or triple bonds

c.  Carbon can bond with atoms of many different elements

B.  Hydrocarbons

1.  Compounds made of only hydrogen and carbon

2.  Hydrocarbons are used for fuel and manufacturing

3.  Types of hydrocarbons

a.  Saturated hydrocarbons - have only single bonds

b.  Unsaturated hydrocarbons - have at least one double or triple bond

4.  Isomers - compounds with identical chemical formulas, but with different structural formulas

5.  Classification of hydrocarbons

a.  Alkanes - have only single bonds (saturated)

b.  Alkenes - have at least one double bond (unsaturated)

c.  Alkynes - have at least one triple bond (unsaturated)

d.  Cycloalkanes - have only single bonds in a ring structure

e.  Aromatics

1)  Have a ring of six carbons joined by alternating single and double bonds

2)  This is the structure of benzene

3)  Aromatics usually have strong odors

f.  Substituted hydrocarbons - one or more hydrogen atoms are replaced by other elements

1)  Alcohols - hydrogen is replaced by a hydroxyl group (-OH)

2)  Organic acids - hydrogen is replaced by a carboxyl group (-COOH)

C.  Esters

1.  Organic compounds made by the reaction of an organic acid with an alcohol

2.  Esters are used as flavoring in foods

3.  Polyesters are synthetic fibers made of long chains of ester linked together

D.  Organic Salts

1.  Soaps and detergents

2.  Soaps increase the cleaning action of water

a.  A soap is made of an ionic end and a long nonpolar tail

b.  The nonpolar tail dissolves fat or grease

c.  The ionic end dissolves in water and carries the dirt away

3.  The difference between soaps and detergents is that detergents do not form a scum in hard water

E.  Biological Compounds

1.  Proteins

a.  Polymers are long chains of smaller organic molecules (monomers)

b.  Proteins are polymers made from amino acids (20 different varieties of amino acids)

c.  Proteins are made from carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen

d.  Amino acids are linked together by peptide bonds to make proteins

e.  Proteins are important to use because they make the enzymes that regulate all bodily chemical reactions

2.  Nucleic acids

a.  DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid)

b.  RNA (ribonucleic acid)

c.  Control cellular activities

d.  Made of smaller units called nucleotides

3.  Carbohydrates

a.  Made of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen with 2x as many H as O

b.  Carbohydrates are our main source of energy (food)

c.  Types of carbohydrates:

1)  Sugars (glucose and sucrose)

2)  Starches are carbohydrates that are polymers

4.  Lipids

a.  Made of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen

b.  Lipids are used for energy storage in living things

c.  Types of lipids:

1)  Fats (made by animals) - mainly saturated

2)  Oils (made by plants) - mainly unsaturated

*   Cholesterol - a lipid produced by animals used to build cell membranes (too much can lead to heart disease)