Alkyl

In organic chemistry, an alkyl substituent is an alkane missing one hydrogen. The term alkyl is intentionally unspecific to include many possible substitutions. An acyclic alkyl has the general formula C_nH_2n+1. A cycloalkyl is derived from a cycloalkane by removal of a hydrogen atom from a ring and has the general formula C_nH_2n−1. Typically an alkyl is a part of a larger molecule. In structural formula, the symbol R is used to designate a generic (unspecified) alkyl group. The smallest alkyl group is methyl, with the formula CH₃−.

Alkyls in everyday life

The word root alkyl is encountered in several contexts. Alkylation is an important operation in refineries, for example in the production of high-octane gasoline. Alkylating antineoplastic agents refer to a class of compounds that are used to treat cancer. In such case, the term alkyl is used loosely. For example, nitrogen mustards are well-known alkylating agents, but they are more complex than a mere hydrocarbon. In chemistry, alkyl refers to a group, a substituent, that is attached to other molecular fragments. For example, alkyl lithium reagents have the empirical formula Li(alkyl), where alkyl = methyl, ethyl, etc. A dialkyl ether is an ether with two alkyl groups, e.g., diethyl ether (O(C₂H₅)₂).