Degrees+of+Unsaturation

__**Saturated** **Hydrocarbons**__

A //hydrocarbon// is an organic compound that is composed solely of carbon and hydrogen.

These hydrocarbons come in two flavors: saturated, and unsaturated. (You probably have heard of saturated fats.)

A //saturated// hydrocarbon will have its maximum number of hydrogens. It will not contain any functional groups, rings, or multiple bonds.

The number of carbons in a saturated hydrocarbon can be used to determine the number of hydrogens. This formula, shown below, can be used to quickly calculate the number of hydrogens in a saturated hydrocarbon:


 * C n H 2n+2 **

For example, octane contains eight carbons. So, this makes n = 8, and therefore 2(8) + 2 = 18. So octane has the formula C 8 H 18.


 * __Degrees of Unsaturation__**

When a compound contains functional groups such as rings, multiple bonds, etc., then the number of hydrogens in the formula is reduced.

Each site on the molecule that reduces the number of hydrogens is called a "site of unsaturation".