Uploaded November 2024 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
In this video, we’ll break down the key differences between ketones and aldehydes in a way that’s easy to remember! An aldehyde has a double-bonded oxygen attached to a carbon that has a hydrogen next to it—think alde-H-yde because there’s an "H" on the carbon. For example, formaldehyde (HCHO) and acetaldehyde (CH₃CHO) are classic aldehydes.
Ketones, on the other hand, have a double-bonded oxygen with carbons on both sides, so there’s no hydrogen directly attached to that carbon. Examples of ketones include acetone (CH₃COCH₃) and butanone (CH₃COCH₂CH₃), where the carbonyl carbon is sandwiched between two other carbons.
After covering the basics and these examples, we’ll go through some practice questions to help reinforce these differences. This is a good way to solidify your understanding of ketones and aldehydes.
In this video, we’ll break down the key differences between ketones and aldehydes in a way that’s easy to remember! An aldehyde has a double-bonded oxygen attached to a carbon that has a hydrogen next to it—think alde-H-yde because there’s an "H" on the carbon. For example, formaldehyde (HCHO) and acetaldehyde (CH₃CHO) are classic aldehydes.
Ketones, on the other hand, have a double-bonded oxygen with carbons on both sides, so there’s no hydrogen directly attached to that carbon. Examples of ketones include acetone (CH₃COCH₃) and butanone (CH₃COCH₂CH₃), where the carbonyl carbon is sandwiched between two other carbons.
After covering the basics and these examples, we’ll go through some practice questions to help reinforce these differences. This is a good way to solidify your understanding of ketones and aldehydes.
