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carbonyl

carbonyl

9.8
A compound where a metal is bonded to carbon monoxide molecules
  • noun
  • /ˈkɑːrbəˌnɪl/
  • Specialized
translation icon : carbonilo
  • In inorganic chemistry, understanding how a carbonyl interacts with metal ions is crucial for developing new catalysts.

Examples

  • Iron carbonyl compounds are known for their roles in industrial processes that separate metals from ores.

  • And So what you can have is a carbonyl and you can have a metal that can activate the carbonyl for nucleophilic attack.

  • We see uracil, which happens to be present in RNA, but not DNA, which has two carbonyls here and here.

  • The researcher synthesized a new metal complex using carbonyl bonding techniques in the laboratory.

Compounds

carbonyl group
  • Specialized
6.3

A part of a molecule where carbon joins oxygen by a double bond, found in aldehydes and ketones

Surface Forms

carbonyl singular
carbonyls plural

Morphology

carbonyl = carbon (opaque) = carbon + yl

Although formed from 'carbon' + '-yl', this inorganic chemistry sense (metal complexes of CO groups) is a specialized sense not derivable from the simple components by general learners.

Etymology

Carbonyl comes from carbon, from the Latin carbo which means 'coal', and the ending -yl meaning a 'part' or 'group'. That is why chemists call compounds like iron pentacarbonyl 'metal carbonyls' — they are metals with carbon-based 'groups' (carbon monoxide units) attached.