Science Common Sense

1723 - How do different functional groups affect the properties of organic compounds.

Imagine you have a big piece of LEGO, and each LEGO brick has different shapes and colors. In organic chemistry, the "LEGO bricks" are called functional groups, which are groups of atoms attached to a bigger molecule.

Different functional groups can affect the properties of an organic compound in various ways:

1. How well it dissolves: Some functional groups make the molecule like water (polar), while others make it not like water (nonpolar). This affects how well it dissolves in water or other liquids.
2. How reactive it is: Some functional groups make the molecule easy to break apart or react with other molecules (reactive), while others make it harder (stable).
3. How it behaves when heated: Some functional groups make the molecule boil or melt at a lower temperature, while others make it boil or melt at a higher temperature.
4. How it smells or tastes: Some functional groups give the molecule a strong smell or taste, while others make it odorless or tasteless.

Common examples of functional groups and their properties include: * Hydroxyl (-OH) makes the molecule polar and able to dissolve in water (like alcohols). * Carbonyl (C=O) makes the molecule reactive and gives it a strong smell (like ketones). * Amino (-NH2) makes the molecule able to react with other molecules and gives it a "fishy" smell (like amines).

So, just like how LEGO bricks can be combined to build different objects, functional groups can combine to create different organic compounds with unique properties.