Cyclobutyne (C
4H
4) is a
hydrocarbon
In organic chemistry, a hydrocarbon is an organic compound consisting entirely of hydrogen and carbon. Hydrocarbons are examples of group 14 hydrides. Hydrocarbons are generally colourless and Hydrophobe, hydrophobic; their odor is usually fain ...
molecule
A molecule is a group of two or more atoms that are held together by Force, attractive forces known as chemical bonds; depending on context, the term may or may not include ions that satisfy this criterion. In quantum physics, organic chemi ...
containing a
triple bond
A triple bond in chemistry is a chemical bond between two atoms involving six Electron pair bond, bonding electrons instead of the usual two in a covalent bond, covalent single bond. Triple bonds are stronger than the equivalent covalent bond, sin ...
within a four
carbon atom ring. This
cycloalkyne
In organic chemistry, a cycloalkyne is the cyclic analog (chemistry), analog of an alkyne (). A cycloalkyne consists of a closed Ring (chemistry), ring of carbon atoms containing one or more triple bonds. Cycloalkynes have a general formula Becau ...
is very unstable due to its high
ring strain
In organic chemistry, ring strain is a type of instability that exists when bonds in a molecule form angles that are abnormal. Strain is most commonly discussed for small rings such as cyclopropanes and cyclobutanes, whose internal angles ar ...
and has not been isolated in the pure state. However,
osmium
Osmium () is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol Os and atomic number 76. It is a hard, brittle, bluish-white transition metal in the platinum group that is found as a Abundance of elements in Earth's crust, trace element in a ...
coordination complex
A coordination complex is a chemical compound consisting of a central atom or ion, which is usually metallic and is called the ''coordination centre'', and a surrounding array of chemical bond, bound molecules or ions, that are in turn known as ' ...
es containing cyclobutyne have been synthesized.
See also
*
Cyclobutene
Cyclobutene is an organic compound with the chemical formula . It is a cycloalkene. It is a colorless gas that easily condenses. It is of interest in research but currently has no practical applications. A modern synthesis involves the 2-step deh ...
*
Cyclobutane
Cyclobutane is a cycloalkane and organic compound with the formula (CH2)4. Cyclobutane is a colourless gas and is commercially available as a liquefied gas. Derivatives of cyclobutane are called cyclobutanes. Cyclobutane itself is of no commerc ...
References
4
Four-membered rings
Hypothetical chemical compounds
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