Cyclohexane Chair Flip

Key Questions

• Why is the chair the most stable conformation in the cyclohexanes?

  Answer:

  Chair is more stable than boat because... see explanation

  Explanation:

  In both conformations chair and boat, the bond angle is #109.5^@# which eliminates the angular strain in the cyclohexane structure. However, why chair is more stable than boat?

  The answer is because of the torsional and steric strains which are more present in a boat conformation.

  This video explains in details the conformation energy of cycloalkanes:

  Dr. Hayek · 2 · Sep 19 2015
• Are chair flip and ring flip the same thing for cyclohexanes?

  Answer:

  Yes

  Explanation:

  All equatorial substituents become axial and vice versa.

  Bio · 1 · Sep 12 2016
• What is a cyclohexane chair flip?

  Answer:

  Just to retire this question.....this is really something you should address with a model....

  Explanation:

  A cyclohexane ring lies ROUGHLY in the plane, and each CARBON bears an AXIAL substituent, and an EQUATORIAL substituent.

  

  There are SIX blue equatorial substituents, and SIX red axial substituents....and there is a fairly soft energy of exchange which exchanges the axial and equatorial substituents... If the substituent is LARGER than hydrogen, the conformation with the bulky substituent in the equatorial position is the one that is most energetically stable in that it minimizes the interaction between the axial substituents. And again I stress that you should verify what I say and mean with a model in your hands....

  

  Now when these conformations undergo transition, the axial and equatorial substituents EXCHANGE DIRECTLY.... it is a non-trivial proposition to draw a diagram of the process, and it will repay some practice should you be asked to represent the exchange in an exam...

  anor277 · 1 · Jun 10 2018

• What is a cyclohexane chair flip?
• Are chair flip and ring flip the same thing for cyclohexanes?
• Why is the chair the most stable conformation in the cyclohexanes?
• How can I draw the more stable chair conformer of trans -1-ethyl-2-methylcyclohexane?
• What are two types of substituent positions around a chair?
• How can I draw the more stable chair conformer of cis -1-ethyl-2-methylcyclohexane?
• Are there other less stable conformations in the cyclohexanes?
• Which is more stable, cis -1-ethyl-2-methylcyclohexane or trans -1-ethyl-2-methylcyclohexane?
• What is the 'true boat' conformation?
• What are some common mistakes students make with cyclohexane chair flip?
• How can I flip cyclohexane chairs?
• Why is interconversion of cyclohexane called ring flip?
• How do you find the lowest energy of a chair conformation?
• How do you do flip chair conformations?
• How do you draw flip chair conformations?