IUPAC nomenclature of chemistry

The main structure of chemical names according to IUPAC nomenclature

IUPAC nomenclature is a set of recommendations for naming chemical compounds and for describing chemistry and biochemistry in general. The International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) is the international authority on chemical nomenclature and terminology.

History of the Standardisation of Nomclature

In 1787, Louis-Bernard Guyton de Morveau published his nomenclature recommendations in collaboration with fellow French chemists Berthollet, de Fourcroy and Lavoisier.

This work however only covered what we would nowadays deem inorganic compounds. With the expansion of organic chemistry in the of the 19th century, and a greater understanding of the structure of organic compounds, the need of a more global standardised nomenclature became more prominent. Following a series of meetings, he first of which was established in 1860 by August Kekulé, the Geneva Nomenclature of 1892 was created.

Another entity called the International Association of Chemical Societies (IACS) existed, and on 1911, gave vital propositions the new organising body should address. These propositions included:

• Nomenclature of inorganic and organic chemistry;
• Standardization of atomic weights;
• Standardization of physical constants;
• Editing tables of properties of matter;
• Establishing a commission for the review of work;
• Standardization of the formats of publications;
• Measures required to prevent repetition of the same pap

The same entity also established a commission in 1913 by but it's work was interrupted by the start of World War I.

In 1919, after the end of the first world war, a group of chemists created the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) with this idea of standardising and expanding nomenclature as well as unionising scientists and strengthening the international trade of science. In 1921 they appointed commissions for nomenclature in organic, inorganic, and biochemistry. In 2019 IUPAC celebrated its 100th anniversary.

Use

IUPAC states that, "As one of its major activities, IUPAC develops Recommendations to establish unambiguous, uniform, and consistent nomenclature and terminology for specific scientific fields, usually presented as: glossaries of terms for specific chemical disciplines; definitions of terms relating to a group of properties; nomenclature of chemical compounds and their classes; terminology, symbols, and units in a specific field; classifications and uses of terms in a specific field; and conventions and standards of practice for presenting data in a specific field." Recommendations are published in IUPAC's journal, Pure and Applied Chemistry (PAC), the publicly available IUPAC Standards Online database, IUPAC Color Books, and other publications. PAC journal issues are freely available the year following publication.

The two IUPAC bodies that lead nomenclature and terminology efforts are Division VIII – Chemical Nomenclature and Structure Representation and the Interdivisional Committee on Terminology, Nomenclature, and Symbols.

See also

• International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry
• Preferred IUPAC name
• IUPAC books
• Chemical nomenclature

External links

• IUPAC.org
• IUPAC Standards Online