Enantiomers VS Diastereomers | What Is Difference
When it comes to organic compounds, there are two main types: enantiomers and diastereomers. While they share some similarities, there are key differences between these two types of molecules. This blog post will explore those differences – compare enantiomers vs diastereomers, and explain why it is important to be able to distinguish between them. Enantiomers and diastereomers both have unique physical and chemical properties, so learning how to identify them is essential for anyone who wants to work in the field of organic chemistry.
Enantiomers vs Diastereomers
What are enantiomers?
Enantiomers are molecules that are mirror images of each other. They have the same chemical formula, but their configurations are different. This is because they contain different chiral centers. Enantiomers interact with each other in a specific way, and this interaction can be exploited in drug design.
What are diastereomers?
Diastereomers are molecules that share the same structural formula but have different stereocenters. This means that their configurations are not mirror images of each other. Diastereomers interact with each other in a specific way, and this interaction can be exploited in drug design.
Compounds with more than one Stereocenter?
Typically, when molecules have more than one stereocenter, diastereomers are formed. As opposed to enantiomers, which are mirror images of each other, diastereomers are not exact mirror images of each other. Diastereomers will have different properties while enantiomers have identical physical and chemical properties.
Enantiomerically Pure or Enantiopure Substances?
Enantiomerically pure substances have only one type of enantioface in a molecule. For example, if carbon #1 is the only asymmetrical atom in a molecule then any other group attached would be said to be “enantiopure.” A substance that contains 50% R & 50% configurations is described as being “racemic.”
Random Mixture of Diastereomers?
When two diastereomers are mixed together in equal parts, the resulting mixture is called a “random” or racemic mixture. The properties of these mixtures are identical to those of the pure enantiomer mixtures. However, because only one enantiomer exists on average per molecule, they are optically inactive even though perfect crystals may be formed from them. This optical purity makes diastereomers important for identifying specific stereochemistry. For example, separating diastereomers can help determine if an unknown compound is chiral or not. It also helps scientists characterize reactions that are stereospecific without having enough time to separate all possible products through chromatography or recrystallization.
Products of Diastereomer Stereoselective Reactions?
When a stereospecific chemical reaction occurs, each diastereomer will react at a different rate because the transition state is unique to each enantiomer. This leads to selective bond formation with one enantiomer more than another. Another example would be the formation of an alkene by elimination reactions between two molecules. The E2 mechanism leads mostly to “exo” products while E1 leads mostly to “endo” products.
How do enantiomers vs diastereomers differ?
The main difference between enantiomers and diastereomers is the difference in their chiral centers. Enantiomers have a different arrangement of atoms around its chiral center, while diastereomers have the same arrangement of atoms around each chiral center.
These two classes of molecules are not as different as they appear. Both enantiomers and diastereomers have the same molecular formula, but only one isomer has a specific spatial orientation in space. The other molecule’s chirality is opposite to the first molecule’s chirality. This means that these two classes of molecules can be interconverted by rotation about a single bond or functional group, which would change their stereochemistry from being right-handed to left-handed or vice versa. When considering how this applies to chemistry reactions involving both types of molecules, it becomes clear that converting an enantiomer into its mirror image will yield another enantiomer rather than a diastereomer. In contrast, converting a diastereomer will create configurations are not mirror images of each them. Hope its helpful, fleetserviceshocrv.com wish you learn well!
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