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Home Q & A Board Biology-Related Homework Help Biochemistry
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julia.s julia.s
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11 years ago
Why is the general formula for a cyclic alkane CnH2n instead of CnH2n+2 as found in a noncyclic alkane?
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#1
11 years ago
Because two of the carbon molecules join to each other in a circle, rather than holding onto a hydrogen atom.

Picture 6 people standing in a line, arms outspread, holding each others hands.  The two on the ends are holding an apple in their single open hands.  They have to put those two apples down  in order to make a circle and hold each others hands.  

Those two apples (representing the hydrogren atoms) are the +2 that you lose when a straight-chain alkane becomes a cyclic alkane.
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#2
11 years ago
there is no end carbon that needs the three hydrogens to complete the four bonds. cyclic alkanes are all joined together like a circle...hence each carbon gets 2 hydrogens at most....non-cyclic alkane will need the extra 2 hydrogens to make the structure stable draw it out in lewis structure.
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