Drawing a Structural Formula
Propane, C_3H_8, has a structure in which the three carbon atoms are bonded in a row, each end carbon is bonded to three hydrogens, and the middle carbon is bonded to two hydrogens. Draw the structural formula.
STRATEGY
Think of a compound’s structural formula as a sketch that shows which atoms are bonded to one another. If bonding information is provided—perhaps by a molecular model—the structural formula is written using lines to represent covalent bonds.
Propane