Bonding pattern
Lewis structural formula
R — Ö — H
Functional Group Explorer
Alcohol
R—OH-olMolecular bench
Explore the structure.
R—OHInspect the alcohol group's geometry, bonding pattern, and representative molecules side by side.
- Atoms
- 9
- Bonds
- 8
- Priority
- #7
Representative molecules
Change the carbon skeleton, keep the group in view.
Interactive model
Ethanol (1° alcohol)
03
Ethanol (1° alcohol)
C₂H₅OH · Alcohol
Drag to rotate 360°
C
O
N
H
S
Molecular behavior
Electronic & steric features
Hydroxyl Dipole
Strong permanent dipole: oxygen has high electronegativity (3.44) pulling electron density from hydrogen (2.20) to yield δ- on O and δ+ on H.
2 Non-bonding Lone Pairs
Oxygen possesses two lone electron pairs that act as Lewis basic sites and strong H-bond acceptors.
Steric Classification
Can be primary (1°), secondary (2°), or tertiary (3°) depending on how many alkyl groups connect to the carbinol carbon (C—OH).