alkane
Any acyclic saturated hydrocarbon (methane, ethane, etc.).
Example
“The carbon chain of an alkane may be linear or branched, but must not contain loops (cycles); its chemical formula is of the form CnH2n+2.”
Synonyms
- methane series
Kinds of alkane
- butane
- ethane
- methane
Related words
- alkanesulfonate
- alkanethiol
- alkanethiolate
- alkanium
- alkanofer
- alkanol
- bromoalkane
- chloroalkane
- fluoroalkane
- haloalkane
- halonitroalkane
- isoalkane
Word history
From German "Alkan".
Where this comes from
This definition is adapted from “alkane” on Wiktionary, by its contributors; related-word lists use Open English WordNet (CC BY 4.0, based on Princeton WordNet), published under CC BY-SA 4.0. This page is published under the same licence.