in a monocule formula, what decides the order of the elements?

Question

in a monocule formula, what decides the order of the elements?

In: 2

Answer 1

Depends on the type of molecule, as different molecule classes use different naming (nomenclature) standards.

For simple ionic molecules, the less electronegative atom gets entered first.

For organic chemicals, they start with the longest carbon chain and then note everything else as a branch off of that chain. There are more rules that contol the direction the naming the branches goes, but I’m rusty and won’t try to list them all. You can search for Organic Chemistry Nomenclature if you want a more thorough lesson.

There may be some other areas of chemistry that also use their own nomenclature standards, so you may need to look those up.