-C6H6, is an organic aromatic compound with many interesting properties.

Unlike aliphatic (straight chain carbons) or other cyclic organic compounds, the structure of benzene allows benzene and its derived products to be useful in fields such as health, laboratorial, and other applications such as rubber synthesis.

An aromatic hydrocarbon or arene (or sometimes aryl hydrocarbon)is a hydrocarbon with alternating double and single bonds between carbon atoms forming rings.

was the first to suggest a sensible structure for benzene. The carbons are arranged in a hexagon, and he suggested alternating double and single bonds between them. Each carbon atom has a hydrogen attached to it.

The configuration of six carbon atoms in aromatic compounds is known as a benzene ring, after the simplest possible such hydrocarbon, benzene.

All aromatic compounds are based on benzene, C6H6, which has a ring of six carbon atoms and has the symbol:

Each corner of the hexagon has a carbon atom with a hydrogen attached.

has a symbol C6H5, it is done by removing a hydrogen from a benzene ring, C6H6. Like a methyl or an ethyl group, a phenyl group is always attached to something else. The formula is Ph-R, where Ph stands for Penyl Group and R is for where the hydrogen was removed.

Figure showing the removal of hydrogen from Benzene

Some common substituents, like NO2, Br, and Cl, can be named this way when it is attached to a phenyl group. Long chain carbons attached can also be named this way. The general format for this kind of naming is: (positions of substituents (if >1)- + # (di, tri, ...) + substituent)n + benzene.

Chlorine (Cl) attached to a phenyl group would be named chlorobenzene (chloro + benzene).

Other Examples

Instead of using numbers to indicate substituents on a benzene ring, ortho- (o-), meta- (m-), or para (p-) can be used in place of positional markers when there are two substituents on the benzene ring (disubstituted benzenes). They are defined as the following: ortho- (o-): 1,2- (next to each other in a benzene ring) meta- (m): 1,3- (separated by one carbon in a benzene ring) para- (p): 1,4- (across from each other in a benzene ring)

Using the examlple 1,3-dichlorobenzene, we can use the ortho-, meta-, paranomenclature to transform the chemical name into m-dichlorobenzene, as shown in the figure below.

Here are some other examples of ortho-, meta-, paranomenclature used in context:

However, the substituents used in ortho-, meta-, paranomenclature do not have to be the same. For example, we can use chlorine and a nitro group as substituents in the benzene ring.

Phenol (C6H5OH), serves as a base when other substituents are attached to it. This is best illustrated in the diagram below.

An example showing phenol as a base in its chemical name. Note how benzene no longer serves as a base when an OH group is added to the benzene ring.

Alternatively, we can use the numbering system to indicate this compound. When the numbering system is used, the carbon where the substituent is attached on the base will be given the first priority and named as carbon #1 (C1). The normal priority rules then apply in the nomenclature process (give the rest of the substituents the lowest numbering as you could).

1. Find the longest continuous chain of carbon atoms. This longest chain may not be written in a straight line. 2.Name that longest chain with the appropriate alkane name. 3.Find the substituents and name each of them with the appropriate group name. 4.Number the carbons in the chain such that the lowest number is given to the group nearest one end of the chain. 5.List the groups alphabetically in front of the longest chain name. 6. Precede each group name with a prefix indicating how many of them are present in the molecule. 7. In front of the prefix, list the numbers of each group in the molecule and separate the numbers with a hyphen.

If there are three or more substituent groups, the ring is numbered in such a way as to assign the substituents the lowest possible numbers, as illustrated by the last row of examples. The substituents are listed alphabetically in the final name. If the substitution is symmetrical (third example from the left) the numbering corresponds to the alphabetical order.

Chlorobenzene Nitrobenzene (chloromethyl)benzene Benzenecarboxylic acid Phenylethene Phenylethanone Phenyl ethanoate Phenol

 4-bromo-2-chloro-1-ethylbenzene
p-dichlorobenzene 3,4-difluorobenzyl

bromide p-chloronitrobenzene 1,4-dimethylbenzene

NH2 Cl Br

NO 2 Cl CH3

O Br Br NO 2 C Cl H