Primary carbon atom

Primary carbon atom
Structural formula of propane (primary carbon atoms are marked in red )

A primary carbon atom is a carbon atom that is only bonded to one additional carbon atom. It is therefore at the end of a carbon chain . In the case of alkanes , three hydrogen atoms are bound to each primary carbon atom (see figure on the right). Instead of one of these hydrogen atoms, there can be, for example, a hydroxyl group , the functional group of the alcohols . Analogously, one then speaks of a primary alcohol .

	Comparison of primary with secondary , tertiary and quaternary carbon atoms ( red )
	Primary carbon atom	Secondary carbon atom	Tertiary carbon atom	Quaternary carbon atom
General structure (R = organyl residue )
Extract from structural formula

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Hans Peter Latscha, Uli Kazmaier, Helmut Alfons Klein: Organic Chemistry: Chemistry Basics II . 7th edition. Springer Spectrum, Berlin 2016, ISBN 978-3-662-46180-8 , p. 40 .