What Are the Properties of Stereoisomers

Cholesterol, a more complicated molecule, has eight stereocenters  

To identify the stereocenters, remember to add an appropriate number of hydrogens to complete the tetravalence of each carbon you think might be a stereocenter. 

Enantiomers have identical physical and chemical properties in achiral environments. The enantiomers of tartaric acid (Table 6.1), for example, have the same melting point, the same boiling point, the same solubilities in water and other common solvents, and the same values of pif (the acid ionization constant), and they all undergo the same acid-base reactions. The enantiomers of tartaric acid do, however, differ in optical activity (the ability to rotate the plane of polarized light), a property that is discussed in the next section. 

Diastereomers have different physical and chemical properties, even in achiral environments. Meso-tartaric acid has different physical properties from those of the enantiomers. 

Some Physical Properties of the Stereoisomers of Tartaric Acid  

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What Are the Properties of Stereoisomers How Is Chirality Detected in the Laboratory ... 

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