tetravalent

Examples of tetravalent in the following topics:

• Reactive Intermediates

  • A simple tetravalent compound like methane, CH4, has a tetrahedral configuration.

• Naming Organic Compounds

  • Since hydrogen is such a common component of organic compounds, its amount and locations can be assumed from the tetravalency of carbon, and need not be specified in most cases.

• sp3 Hybridization

  • In a tetravalent molecule, four outer atoms are bonded to a central atom.

• Properties of Carbon

  • As a member of group 14 on the periodic table, it is nonmetallic and tetravalent—making four electrons available to form covalent chemical bonds.

• Enantiomorphism

  • Tetravalent carbons have a tetrahedral configuration.

• Isomers

  • Each straight line segment represents a bond, the ends and intersections of the lines are carbon atoms, and the correct number of hydrogens is calculated from the tetravalency of carbon.
  • In the formula on the right all four 1º-carbons are structurally equivalent (remember the tetrahedral configuration of tetravalent carbon); however the central formula has two equivalent 1º-carbons (bonded to the 3º carbon on the left end) and a single, structurally different 1º-carbon (bonded to the 2º-carbon) at the right end.