Naming Chemical Compounds
Chemical Nomenclature
From the Latin:
Nomen – name
calare – to call
10 million known chemicals
Naming
Ionic Compounds
Naming Rules
Cations
Rule 1: Cations formed from metal ions have the
same name as the metal.( positive ion)
Write the name of the first element
Example
K+ potassium
Zn2+ zinc
Rule 2: Cations that form can form different
charges, use a Roman numeral
Example
Fe2+ iron(II)
Fe3+ iron(III)
Use the table on p364 in your text book!
Anions
Rule 3: Anions( negative ion) drop the ending of
the elemental name and add ------- ide.
Example
Hhydride
O2- oxide
Rule 4: Polyatomic anions containing oxygen have
names ending in -----ate or -------ite
Use the table on p366 in text book (you do not have
to memorize these)
Example
NO3- nitrate
Remove 1 oxygen atom
NO2- nitrite
a.k.a. oxyanions
Naming the Ionic Compound
Cation - Anion
BaBr2
Al(NO3)3
Al(NO2)3
CuSO4
Mg(ClO4)2
Fe(HCO3)3
barium bromide
aluminum nitrate
aluminum nitrite
copper(II) sulfate
magnesium perchlorate
iron(III) hydrogen carbonate
Let’s Go The Other way
potassium sulfide
calcium hydrogen phosphate
nickel(II) hypochlorite
sodium peroxide
strontium nitride
sodium oxide
ammonium sulfide
K2S
CaHPO4
Ni(ClO)2
Na2O2
Sr3N2
Na2O
(NH4)2S
Special Cases for oxygenated halogens
Add 1 extra oxygen
Base
Less 1 oxygen
Less 2 oxygen
ClO4ClO3ClO2ClO-
perchlorate
chlorate
chlorite
hypochlorite
****Use for FO3-, ClO3-, BrO3-, and IO3-
Rule 6: Adding H+ to an oxyanions.
CO32- carbonate
HCO3- hydrogen carbonate
PO43HPO42H2PO4-
phosphate
hydrogen phosphate
dihydrogen phosphate
H+ reduces the charge
Naming Inorganic Acids
Acid – A substance which yields hydrogen
ions(H+) when dissolve in water.
All acids will begin with an “H” as the first
element.
Example: HNO3
HCl
Rule 1: Acids based on anions whose name ends
in -------ide uses
hydro as a prefix and
-----ic as a suffix
Example
HCl hydrochloric acid
H2S hydrosulfuric acid
***These types of acids are called binary acids.
Rule 2: Acids based on anions whose names in
-----ate uses
-----ic as a suffix
Example
HClO3
chloric acid
H3PO4
phosphoric acid
Rule 3: Acids based on anions whose name ends in
-----ite uses
-----ous as a suffix
Example
HClO2
chlorous acid
H2SO3
sulfurous acid
Naming Binary Molecular Compounds
( covalently bonded atoms-nonmetals)
Rules
1. The first shown element is named as the element(
example-CO---carbon is the first element)
2. The name of the second element is given
an -----ide ending.
3. The second element always carries a prefix indicating
the # of times it is present-example CO2 dioxide.
4. The amount of the first element is only shown if it is
present more than once.
4. Greek prefixes are used to indicate the
number of atoms of each element
mono
1
di
tri
tetra
penta
hexa
hepta
octa
nona
deca
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
5. The prefix “mono” is never used with the first
element.
6. When a prefix ends in “a” or “o” and the
name of the second element begins with a
vowel, the “a” or “o” is often dropped.
Examples
OCl2
Oxygen dichloride
NF3
P4S10
SO2
PCl5
N2O3
Nitrogen trifluoride
Tetraphosphorus decasulfide
Sulfur dioxide
Phosphorus pentachloride
Dinitrogen trioxide
The other way
Silicon tetrabromide
Disulfur dichloride
Triphosphorus monoxide
SiBr4
S2Cl2
P3O