Ethers: Bonding, Types, and Naming

Ethers are organic compounds with an oxygen atom bonded to two groups. Those groups may be the same or different, and they can be alkyl, aryl, or vinyl groups. In dimethyl ether, the simplest ether, the C–O–C link has an angle of about 110.3 degrees. The oxygen is sp3-hybridized, and the C–O distance is about 140 pm.

Ethers, represented by the general formula C_nH_2n+2O , are organic compounds that contain an oxygen atom bonded to two alkyl, aryl, or vinyl groups.

Accordingly, ethers can be symmetrical, with identical groups on either side of the oxygen, or asymmetrical, with two different groups.

The oxyge...