Alkene
An alkene is one of the four main types of hydrocarbons. Alkenes are true hydrocarbons, meaning they are made up of nothing but hydrogen and carbon.[1]
Alkanes are based on the formula .
is Carbon.
is Hydrogen.
refers to the number of molecules.
Alkenes are similar to Alkanes except they contain a double bond between two carbon atoms. When one carbon shares a double bond with another, this limits the number of hydrogen which can be bonded (resulting in less hydrogen atoms per carbon atom).
Examples are ethene (), propene (
) and butene (
). Note that when we have 4 or more carbon in a chain, the position of the double bond can create different possible structures and uses a more precise nomenclature.
To learn more about alkenes, click here.