Drawing Organic Structures - Kekulé, Condensed, Bond-Line, Polygon, Lewis | CurlyArrows

Why this chapter?

The art of depiction began with our ancestors. Early humans used lines to tally numbers and quantities and drew sketches on cave walls to represent the life around them. That is why we understand what life was like thousands of years ago and how far we have advanced. Therefore, representations are as old as human civilization itself. 

Chemistry only began to take shape around the 1700s. Methods to unify chemistry representation came much later. The need is obvious. Any two persons from different corners of the world must agree on the same structure of a molecule. Otherwise, not only is there confusion, but it can also lead to future complications.

If you think deep, you will notice that every molecule is made of certain basic elements gathered in some whole-number ratios. This is the shortened form that only lists the number of elements without revealing the structure or how the atoms are connected using bonds. Then, there are elaborate structures that provide a more detailed picture of how the atoms are arranged in space, how they are connected, the number of bonds between them, and their corresponding angles. Drawing complete structures consistently is challenging. Sometimes, shortcuts like drawing wedges, dots, rings, and chains are used.

To become accustomed to the new language of chemistry, the chapter on 'Drawing Organic Structures' covers the various methods of representing organic structures, both two-dimensional and three-dimensional. We will cover Kekulé, Condensed, Bond-Line, Polygon, Lewis, Dash, wedge, line, stick model, ball-stick, and more.

Table of Content

Perhaps thousands of years from now, these chemistry representations will offer a glimpse into our past.