Skeletal formula

The skeletal formula, line-angle formula, bond-line formula or shorthand formula of an organic compound is a type of minimalist structural formula representing a molecule's atoms, bonds and some details of its geometry. The lines in a skeletal formula represent bonds between carbon atoms, unless labelled with another element.^[1] Labels are optional for carbon atoms, and the hydrogen atoms attached to them.

An early form of this representation was first developed by organic chemist August Kekulé, while the modern form is closely related to and influenced by the Lewis structure of molecules and their valence electrons. Hence they are sometimes termed Kekulé structures^[a] or Lewis–Kekulé structures. Skeletal formulas have become ubiquitous in organic chemistry, partly because they are relatively quick and simple to draw, and also because the curved arrow notation used for discussions of reaction mechanisms and electron delocalization can be readily superimposed.

Several other ways of depicting chemical structures are also commonly used in organic chemistry (though less frequently than skeletal formulae). For example, conformational structures look similar to skeletal formulae and are used to depict the approximate positions of atoms in 3D space, as a perspective drawing. Other types of representation, such as Newman projection, Haworth projection or Fischer projection, also look somewhat similar to skeletal formulae. However, there are slight differences in the conventions used, and the reader needs to be aware of them in order to understand the structural details encoded in the depiction. While skeletal and conformational structures are also used in organometallic and inorganic chemistry, the conventions employed also differ somewhat.

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