Physical properties of an organic substance

In addition to reactivity, the physical properties of an organic substance, such as melting point, boiling point and solubility, are among its most important traits. The physical properties of an organic substance can often be predicted from its structure. In most cases, a substance's molecular weight and the functional groups are sufficient information to estimate the melting point, boiling point, and solubility. Comparing molecules of similar size, the greater the strength of intermolecular force, the more equilibrium will favor the condensed phase at a given pressure and temperature.

Organic Compounds

More than 1,000,000 carbon compounds have been described in chemical literature, and chemists synthesize many new ones each year.

All organic compounds, such as proteins, carbohydrates, and fats, contain carbon, and all plant and animal cells consist of carbon compounds and their polymers. (Polymers are macromolecules consisting of many simple molecules bonded together in specific ways.) With hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, and a few other elements, carbon forms compounds that make up about 18 percent of all the matter in living things. The processes by which organisms consume carbon and return it to their surroundings constitute the carbon cycle.

Study of organic chemistry is important for the simple reason that, organic compounds find applications in almost all aspects of our daily life and properties of organic compounds are distinctly different from those of inorganic compounds.

All living systems obtain their energy from organic compounds like carbohydrates (sugars) and fats, using amino acids and proteins (organic) to grow. They transmit genetic information from one generation to the next through organic compounds called nucleic acids. The clothes we wear are of natural fibres like cotton, while wool or silk or synthetic materials like polyester are organic compounds. Most of the drugs and pharmaceuticals are also organic compounds. In agriculture too, organic chemistry is well represented. Fertilizers like urea, pesticides like DDT, malathion and gammaxene, and plant growth regulators are all organic chemicals. Among various energy sources, fossil fuels like coal, lignite, petroleum and natural gas are of organic origin. Commonly used polymers natural and synthetic like wood, rubber, paper and plastics are again organic compounds.

Organic chemists at all levels are generally employed by pharmaceutical, biotechnical, chemical, consumer product, and petroleum industries.

Biotechnology (“biotech” for short) is a field of applied biology that involves using living organisms and bioprocesses to create or modify products for a specific use. The cultivation of plants has been viewed as the earliest example of biotechnology and the precursor to modern genetic engineering and cell and tissue culture technologies. Virtually all biotechnology products are the result of organic chemistry.

Biotechnology is used in health care, crop production and agriculture, nonfood uses of crops and other products (e.g., biodegradable plastics, vegetable oil, biofuels), and environmental applications.

The chemical industry is crucial to modern world economies and works to convert raw materials such as oil, natural gas, air, water, metals, and minerals into more than 70,000 different products. These base products are then used to make consumer products in addition to manufacturing, service, construction, agriculture, and other industries.

Over three-fourths of the chemical industry’s output worldwide is polymers and plastics. Chemicals are used to make a wide variety of consumer goods, as well as thousands of products that are inputs to the agriculture, manufacturing, construction, and service industries. The chemical industry itself consumes about a quarter of its own output. Major industrial customers include rubber and plastic products, textiles, petroleum refining, pulp and paper, and primary metals.

Consumer products companies make consumer products for everyday use, such as soaps, detergents, cleaning products, plastic goods, and cosmetics.

The petroleum industry includes the global processes of exploration, extraction, refining, transporting, and marketing petroleum products. The largest volume products of the industry are fuel oil and gasoline. Petroleum is also the raw material for many chemical products, including pharmaceuticals, solvents, fertilizers, pesticides, and plastics. The industry is usually divided into three major components: upstream (exploration and production), midstream (transportation), and downstream (refining crude oil, processing and purifying natural gas, creating petrochemicals).

The pharmaceutical industry develops, produces, and markets drugs licensed for use as medications for humans or animals.

Organic chemistry is the most important branch of chemistry — but of course, it would be nothing without the many other areas of chemistry — in fact all branches of chemistry should not be viewed in isolation.