Alcohol molecules are organic molecules that contain an -OH group.

This -OH group

makes the molecule reactive, so it is called a functional group.

Alcohol functional groups are found in biological molecules such as sugars, amino
acids, and vitamins. Alcohol functional groups are also found in molecules that are
used every day. You can find ethanol in drinks like wine, beer, vodka, whiskey,
gin, and rum, among many others. Ever had to check the antifreeze levels in your
car? It contains ethylene glycol, another alcohol.

Structure of ethylene glycol

Ethylene Glycol
Nomenclature
The alcohol functional group hydroxyl is an -OH group. When naming alcohols, the -e
is removed from the hydrocarbon name and an -ol suffix is added. A number in front
of the hydrocarbon name tells the location of the alcohol group.

For example, in 1-butanol, there are four carbon atoms, so the parent hydrocarbon
name is butane. The -e is dropped from butane and -ol is added, resulting in
butanol. The 1 indicates the alcohol group is on the first carbon.

1-butanol
1-butanol
The carbon chain should be numbered so that the alcohol has the lowest number. When
naming the molecule 1-butanol, you can either name it as 4-butanol or 1-butanol,
depending on which side of the molecule you begin to count. Since 1 is a smaller
number than 4, 1-butanol is correct. If there are two alcohol groups on a molecule
the suffix is changed to -diol.

Alcohol Molecule Classification

Molecules can be classified based on the number of alcohol groups.

monohydric -one alcohol group on the molecule

dihydric - two alcohol groups on the molecule
polyhydric - more than 2 alcohol groups on the molecule
Alcohol classifications are based on the number of alcohol groups
alcohol classifications
Solubility
The number of alcohol groups that a molecule has will affect its solubility. As the
number of alcohol groups increase on the molecule with the same number of carbons,
the solubility in water increases. For example, 1,4-butandiol is more soluble in
water than 1-butanol.

1-butanol (above) is less soluble than 1,4-butandiol, because it has fewer alcohol
groups
butanol
Another way to think about this is that as the number of carbon atoms increase in
an alcohol, the solubility in water decreases. So, 1-octanol with eight carbons per
alcohol group is less soluble in water than 1-butanol with four carbons per alcohol
group.

Alcohol Functional Group Classification

Alcohols can also be classified based on the carbon to which they are attached.
primary - the alcohol is attached to a carbon with two hydrogens
secondary - the alcohol is attached to a carbon with one hydrogen
tertiary - the alcohol is attached to a carbon atom with no hydrogens
Examples of primary, secondary, and tertiary alcohols
classification of alcohols