of organic compounds in which the members differ by a constant relative molecular mass of 14. Each carbon atom must have 4 bonds (either C-H or C-C bonds), and each hydrogen atom must be joined to a carbon atom (H-C bonds). A series of linked carbon atoms is known as the carbon skeleton or carbon backbone. In general, the number of carbon atoms is often used to define the size of the alkane (for example, C2-alkane). An alkyl group is NOT a functional group and doesn't show any characteristic r… (More on Alkanes)