heteroatoms

HETEROATOMS

• Halogens take the place of hydrogens, so add their number to the number of H’s.
• Oxygen doesn’t change the C:H ratio, so ignore oxygen in the formula.
• Nitrogen is trivalent, so it acts like half a carbon.

  H   H          H
-C - C - N - C -
 H   H    H   H

Problem:
Why the Nitrogen can be change carbon and what the function!


about heteroatoms:

Heteroatom Chemistry is designed to bring together a broad,
interdisciplinary group of chemists who work with compounds containing
main-group elements of groups 13 through 17 of the Periodic Table and
certain other related elements. The fundamental reactivity should, in all
cases, be concentrated about the heteroatoms. It does not matter whether the
compounds being studied are acyclic or cyclic; saturated or unsaturated; of
a monomeric, polymeric or solid state nature; inorganic, organic or
naturally occurring, so long as the heteroatom is playing an essential role.

Also, both experimental articles and those based on computational chemistry are welcomed. In general, Heteratom Chemistry will not accept manuscripts based on classical heterocyclic chemistry (for which several special
journals are available). It welcomes, however, interesting articles on
heterocyclic systems beyond the scope of classical organic chemistry.

On a more positive note, there are many areas of research that are
unmistakable examples of heteroatom chemistry. These include structures and
reactions that exhibit:

(a) unusual valency of highly coordinated main-group element compounds;
(b) characteristics and unusual properties of low coordinate main-group
element compounds;
(c) characteristics and unusual properties of highly strained main-group
element compounds;
(d) similarities between main-group compounds and transition metal
compounds;
(e) facile photochemical or thermal cleavage of bonds involving heteroatoms
that lead to highly reactive intermediate species;
(f) the unusual reactivity of compounds that contain multiply bonded
heteroatoms;
(g) the unusual structures and reactivities of highly catenated heteroatoms;
(h) specific and unusual neighboring group effects of heteroatoms on
physical and chemical properties of compounds;
(i) useful influences on synthetic processes; and
(j) wide applicability over many elements of the Periodic Table, e.g.,

ligand coupling within hypervalent species; variations on the immensely
important Wittig reactions; and the stereochemistry of compounds based on
the influence of heteroatoms present in the molecules.

These statements are not designed to limit the scope of heteroatom
chemistry; rather, they are intended to illustrate the many ways in which
heteroatoms play essential roles in the chemistry of compounds containing
them.