catenation
Sign in to savethumb|A nonane molecule, consisting of nine [[carbon atoms in a chain with 20 hydrogen atoms surrounding it]]
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12 sectionsContents
- Carbon
- Hydrogen
- Silicon
- Boron
- Nitrogen
- Phosphorus
- Sulfur
- Semimetallic elements
- Halogens
- See also
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thumb|A nonane molecule, consisting of nine [[carbon atoms in a chain with 20 hydrogen atoms surrounding it]]
In chemistry, catenation is the bonding of atoms of the same element into a series, called a chain. A chain or a ring may be open if its ends are not bonded to each other (an open-chain compound), or closed if they are bonded in a ring (a cyclic compound). The words to catenate and catenation reflect the Latin root catena, "chain".