Question

What are alkyl, aryl, aliphatic and aromatic groups?

Answer 1

Alkyl groups

• An alkyl group is obtained from a saturated hydrocarbon by removing a hydrogen atom from carbon.
• An example of the alkyl group is a methyl$\left({\mathrm{CH}}_3\right)$ group.

Aryl groups

• An aryl group always contains an aromatic ring.
• An example of an aryl group is a phenyl$\left({\mathrm{C}}_6{\mathrm{H}}_5\right)$ group.

Aliphatic groups

• An aliphatic compound or aliphatic hydrocarbon is an organic compound containing hydrogen and carbon atoms that are usually linked together in chains via single, double, or triple bonds.
• An example of an aliphatic group is ethane$\left({\mathrm{C}}_2{\mathrm{H}}_6\right)$.

Aromatic groups

• Aromatic compounds are usually cyclic due to the presence of the benzene ring in their structure.
• The most common example of an aromatic compound is benzene.