CONFORMATIONS OF ALKANES AND CYCLOALKANES

Purpose: The purpose of this activity is to explore the different conformations of simple alkane and
cycloalkane molecules.

Materials: Lab sheets, Model kits, Laptops with ChemSketch

Safety: Do not throw or ingest atoms or bonds from the model kit.

The “front” carbon is represented by the intersection of the bonds to its three attached hydrogens. The
bonds from the remaining three hydrogens connect to the circle, which represents the “back” carbon.
Propane and butane can also be easily depicted using Newman projections. Each conformation of each
molecule of ethane, propane, and butane has different amounts of potential energy, depending on how
the atoms within the molecules are arranged. A molecule that has “interference” between different
atoms has a higher potential energy than one whose atoms are as far apart as possible. We can use
Newman projections to see each different conformation of ethane, propane, and butane, then assess
whether the conformation is stable or not.
Procedure

1. Using Newman projections, draw two different conformations of ethane. Label each
conformation as eclipsed or staggered. Construct ethane with the model kit to help see the
different conformations of ethane. Draw ethane on ChemSketch (draw all hydrogens, too).
Using your knowledge of electron-pair repulsion and how it contributes to strain, determine
which conformations of ethane have the highest and lowest potential energy.
2. How would the Newman projection change for propane? Build the model, draw the Newman
projections below and draw the molecule on ChemSketch.
3. Draw the most stable and least stable conformations of butane. Build the model, draw the
Newman projections below and draw the molecule on ChemSketch. Label the conformations
and compare their potential energies.

CONCLUSION:

Alkanes and cycloalkanes consist entirely of carbon skeletons bonded to H atoms since they have no
functional groups. As a result, they serve as a basis for understanding the structures of all other organic
molecules. Conformation of Alkanes deals with the isomers of alkanes that form due to slight changes in
their structure, especially in their carbon-carbon bonds and cycloalkanes are saturated since all the
carbon atoms that make up the ring are single bonded to other atoms.