MCAT Highly Summarized Notes - Organic Chemistry

Organic Chemistry Basics

Carboxylic naming

- One carbon (only carbonyl carbon) = formic acid

- Ethanic acid = acetic acid

- Propanoic acid

- etc.

Ether naming

- Two ethyls = diethyl ether

- Ethyl + acetate = ethyl acetate

Polarity

Intermolecular forces are a description of polarity

- The ability to hydrogen bond makes a substance more polar than one that cannot

- ie. Alcohols are more polar than ketones (also H is less electronegative than C, so one
bond to C vs. two gives the alcohol oxygen more electron density; hence more polar)

Bonding and stability

Nucleophilic substitutions

SN2 (substitution, nucleophilic, bimolecular rate): reactivity CH3 >> 3° (steric hindrance);
absolute con guration (S/R) is inverted; aprotic polar solvents preferred (water and solvate the
nucleophile); favours strong and non-bulky nucleophiles (to access the carbon)

SN1 (substitution, nucleophilic, unimolecular rate): carbocation intermediate formed; reactivity

3° >> 1° (stabilization of carbocation; R groups donate more e- charge than H); protic (H-
bonding solvents like water) preferred (stabilizes the carbocation); water and alcohol can also
act as nucleophiles (duel purpose - carbocation and nucleophile); best for weaker
nucleophiles ; has to be in non-basic solutions (so it doesn’t protonate the carbocation

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