Article
Article
Steric effect (chemistry)
Article By:
Wenkert, Ernest Department of Chemistry, University of California, San Diego, California.
Last reviewed:January 2020
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1036/1097-8542.655400
The influence of the spatial configuration of reacting substances upon the rate, nature, and extent of reaction. The sizes and shapes of atoms and molecules, the electrical charge distribution, and the geometry of bond angles influence the courses of chemical reactions. The steric course of organic chemical reactions is greatly dependent on the mode of bond cleavage and formation, the environment of the reaction site, and the nature of the reaction conditions (reagents, reaction time, and temperature). The effect of steric factors is best understood in ionic reactions in solution. The nucleophilic substitution reaction at a saturated carbon atom can serve as an illustration.
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