IGCSE COORDINATED SCIENCES

(CHEMISTRY)
CH- 14 ORGANIC CHEMISTRY
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
• Compounds found in living beings which has carbon in it
• All living beings are made of chains of carbons covalently bonded with hydrogen an oxygen
and other elements

HYDROCARBONS
• Organic compounds of hydrogen and carbons
• Crude oil is a mixture of many hydrocarbons out of which many substances are obtained.
SUBSTANCES FROM CRUDE OIL
OIL REFINING –
• Crude oil is refined to get the other products from it
• The process called fractional distillation is used where the substances are separated based on
their boiling points.
OIL REFINING PROCESS –
• The crude oil is heated at 400•C for it to vapourise
• When it gets vapourized, the groups of hydrocarbons are collected
• The hydrocarbons with less carbon atoms float up high and have low boiling points.
• The number of carbons atoms is directly proportional to the boiling point.
FOSSIL FUELS
• Coal, oil and natural gas are fuels which were formed after million years of compression of dead plants
and animals.
• There are types of carbons based on their carbon content in them
• Anthracite – 90% carbon content
• Bituminous – 60% carbo content
• Lignite – 40% carbo content
• Peat – 20% carbon content
• COMBUSTION OF FUEL –
• Fuel provides energy when combusted and produces carbon dioxide and water
• Ex –
Methane + oxygen → carbon dioxide + water + energy
Sometimes sulfur is also produced. The content of sulfur varies from fuel to fuel.
HOMOLOGOUS SERIES

A group of hydrocarbons whose chemical, general and structural

formula are same
ALKANES
• Alkanes are hydrocarbons in crude oil where the carbon atoms are covalently bonded with four other atoms.
• There are only single bonds in alkanes which make them the SATURATED hydrocarbons.
• Most of the hydrocarbons in crude oil belong to the alkanes group
• General formula → CnH2n+2
• As the number of carbon atoms increase the physical properties change like the boiling and melting points and the state of
matter
• No. of carbons. State
1-4 gas
5-16 liquid
16 and above. Solid
• Naming of alkanes
Ends with ane
Based on number of carbon atoms
Meth – 1
Eth – 2
Prop – 3
But – 4
Pent – 5
Hex – 6
CHEMICAL BEHAVIOUR OF ALKANES
• Unreactive compounds, don’t get affected by alkalis
• Easily combustible
• Gaseous alkane combust completely producing carbon dioxide, water and
energy
• Used as fuels, heating buildings, stows (LPG), lighters, etc.
ALKENES
• General formula – CnH2n
• Carbon atoms have double covalent bonds which make them unsaturated hydrocarbons
• Naming is the same as alkanes except that ‘ene’ should be added in the end
• Alkenes are very important industrial chemicals as they are used in making alcohols and
plastics.
• There has to be a double bond so ‘methane’ doesn’t exist.
• Very few alkenes are obtained from nature most of them are made from useless alkanes by the
process of catalytic cracking.
CHEMICAL BEHAVIOURS OF ALKENES
• More reactive than the alkanes because of the double bonds
• Hydrogenation reaction -