Home > Organic Chemistry > Introduction to Chirality and Chiral Centers

How would you identify which of the following molecules are chiral and which are achiral: butane, 2-butanol, 2-propanol, 2-bromobutane, and 1-bromobutane?

Answer 1

butane - achiral
2-butanol - chiral
2-propanol - achiral
2-bromobutane - chiral
1-bromobutane - achiral

When a molecule has two enantiomeric forms then it is chiral. When it doesn't have an enantiomer then it achiral...you differentiate between them by several methods;

First method;
you can draw the molecule and check if it has plane of symmetry (plane that bisects a molecule into halves that are mirror images of each other)...if it has plane of symmetry,then it is achiral
Example;
= Butane

By signing up, you agree to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

Answer 2

Christian Anderson

To identify which molecules are chiral and which are achiral:

Butane is achiral.
2-butanol is chiral.
2-propanol is achiral.
2-bromobutane is chiral.
1-bromobutane is achiral.

By signing up, you agree to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

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.