General Approaches to Naming Organic Compounds

As in Chapter 3, we will use systematic nomenclature to obtain first-choice names, but we also will indicate common usage, at least parenthetically. 

There are two aspects to consider how to derive the name from the structure, and how to derive the structure from the name. We will discuss each by example. 

7 More on Nomenclature. Compounds Other Than Hydrocarbons 

You first should decide what type of compound it is. The decision usually is straightforward for hydrocarbons, which will fall in one or the other of the categories alkanes, alkenes, alkynes, arenes, cycloalkanes, and so on. But when the compound has more than one functional group it is not always obvious which is the parent function. For example, Compound 1 could be named as an alkene (because of the double-bond function) or as an alcohol (because of the OH function)  

There are no simple rules to follow that dictate which is the parent function, and we suggest that the order of precedence of functional groups set by Chemical Abstracts be used whenever possible (see Table 7-1). By this system, the OH group takes precedence over hydrocarbons, and Compound 1 therefore is named as an alcohol, not as an alkene. 

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