Alkanes are saturated hydrocarbons in which a bond is found between two carbon atoms. Which has a general formula _______.

The correct answer is CnH2n+2.

• Alkanes are saturated hydrocarbons in which a bond is found between two carbon atoms. And its general formula is CnH2n+2.

Key Points

• Alkanes are organic compounds that consist entirely of single-bonded carbon and hydrogen atoms and lack any other functional groups.
  • Alkanes are also saturated hydrocarbons. Alkanes are the simplest and least reactive hydrocarbon species containing only carbons and hydrogens. 
  • Alkanes have the general formula  CnH2n+2 and can be subdivided into the following three groups:
  • The linear straight-chain alkanes.
    • Branched alkanes.
    • Cycloalkanes.
  • Alkanes have densities between 0.6 and 0.8 g/cm3, so they are less dense than water. Thus gasoline, which is largely a mixture of alkanes, is less dense than water and will float on water.