Home > Organic Chemistry > Introduction to Chirality and Chiral Centers

How can I select the chiral centers?

Answer 1

#sp^3# carbon atoms that have four different substituents.

To identify stereogenic centres look for #sp^3# carbon atoms that have four different substituents.

Example:

All circled carbon atoms are stereogenic centres. Don't forget the fourth substituent which is hydrogen (not showing on a skeletal structure).

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Answer 2

Maya Allen

To identify chiral centers, examine each carbon atom in the molecule. If a carbon atom is bonded to four different groups, it is a chiral center. These groups can be atoms or functional groups.

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Answer from HIX Tutor

When evaluating a one-sided limit, you need to be careful when a quantity is approaching zero since its sign is different depending on which way it is approaching zero from. Let us look at some examples.