Organic Compound
An organic compound is a compound containing carbon in combination with one or more elements. Organic compounds are generally characterized by chains of connected carbon atoms. Hydrocarbons contain only carbon and hydrogen, while many other organic compounds contain carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen. Other major elements in naturally occurring organic compounds are nitrogen, phosphorus, and sulfur. Exceptions to the classification of carbon-containing compounds as organic compounds include carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, carbon disulfide, carbon tetrachloride, hydrogen cyanide, carbonates, and carbides, which have traditionally been regarded as inorganic compounds.
It was commonly believed that compounds of carbon could only be produced by the vital forcefound in living organisms. However, in 1828, Wöhler found, by accident, that the application of heat to ammonium cyanate, an inorganic compound, caused it to change to urea, a compound thought to be formed only by living organisms. Today many organic compounds are products of synthetic chemistry, with no similar products existing in nature.
Organic compounds are essential for the functioning of human life. Modern civilization is almost totally dependent on hydrocarbons that occur in the earth's crust as natural gas and petroleum, which provide the major sources of energy and also serve as raw materials for the manufacture of plastics and many other materials. Food substances consist of a variety of organic compounds that serve as a source of energy for living organisms. Examples of organic compounds used for food include carbohydrates, fats and oils, and proteins and amino acids. Detergents and soaps are organic compounds that are used as cleansing materials. Natural and synthetic organic pesticides are used extensively in agriculture to control undesirable forms of life. Both natural and synthetically produced organic compounds also serve as effective medicines for the treatment of disease.
Properties of organic compounds that differ from those of inorganic compounds include: (1) organic compounds are usually combustible; (2) organic compounds, in general, have lower melting and boiling points; (3) organic compounds are usually less soluble in water; (4) several organic compounds may exist for a given formula (known as isomers); (5) reactions of organic compounds are usually molecular in nature rather than ionic and so are often quite slow; (6) molecular weights of organic compounds may be very high (e.g., well over 1,000); and (7) most organic compounds can serve as a food source for bacteria.
Common types of organic compounds include aliphatic hydrocarbons (including alkanes, alkenes, and alkynes), aromatic hydrocarbons (e.g., benzene), alcohols, esters, ethers, amines and amides (which contain nitrogen), and carboxylic acids.
This is the complete article, containing 411 words
(approx. 1 page at 300 words per page).
