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Deriving Possible Isomers

There is no simple way to know how many isomers exist for a given molecular formula, and therefore, it is important to have a systematic method to derive them.

Important preliminary steps in the process are:

  1. determine the IHD to see what types of structures you should be considering
  2. list the functional groups that are possible based on the molecular formula and IHD.

Once you have done that, here are a few suggestions to aid the drawing process.....


organic chemistry © Dr. Ian Hunt, Department of Chemistry University of Calgary