Naming Alcohols

1. Find the longest chain containing the hydroxy group (OH). If there is a chain with more carbons than the one containing the OH group it will be named as a subsitutent.
2. Place the OH on the lowest possible number for the chain. With the exception of carbonyl groups such as ketones and aldehydes, the alcohol or hydroxy groups have first priority for naming.
3. When naming a cyclic structure, the -OH is assumed to be on the first carbon unless the carbonyl group is present, in which case the later will get priority at the first carbon.
4. When multiple -OH groups are on the cyclic structure, number the carbons on which the -OH groups reside.
5. Remove the final e from the parent alkane chain and add -ol. When multiple alcohols are present use di, tri, et.c before the ol, after the parent name. ex. 2,3-hexandiol. If a carbonyl group is present, the -OH group is named with the prefix "hydroxy," with the carbonyl group attached to the parent chain name so that it ends with -al or -one.

Examples

Ethane: CH₃CH₃ ----->Ethanol:

(the alcohol found in beer, wine and other consumed sprits)

Secondary alcohol:

2-propanol

Other functional groups on an alcohol: 3-bromo-2-pentanol

Cyclic alcohol (two -OH groups):

cyclohexan-1,4-diol

Other functional group on the cyclic structure:

3-hexeneol (the alkene is in bold and indicated by numbering the carbon closest to the alcohol)

A complex alcohol:

4-ethyl-3hexanol (the parent chain is in red and the substituent is in blue)

In the IUPAC system of nomenclature, functional groups are normally designated in one of two ways. The presence of the function may be indicated by a characteristic suffix and a location number. This is common for the carbon-carbon double and triple bonds which have the respective suffixes -ene and -yne. Halogens, on the other hand, do not have a suffix and are named as substituents, for example: (CH₃)₂C=CHCHClCH₃ is 4-chloro-2-methyl-2-pentene.

Alcohols are usually named by the first procedure and are designated by an -ol suffix, as in ethanol, CH₃CH₂OH (note that a locator number is unnecessary on a two-carbon chain). On longer chains the location of the hydroxyl group determines chain numbering. For example: (CH₃)₂C=CHCH(OH)CH₃ is 4-methyl-3-penten-2-ol. Other examples of IUPAC nomenclature are shown below, together with the common names often used for some of the simpler compounds. For the mono-functional alcohols, this common system consists of naming the alkyl group followed by the word alcohol. Alcohols may also be classified as primary, 1º, secondary, 2º, and tertiary, 3º, in the same manner as alkyl halides. This terminology refers to alkyl substitution of the carbon atom bearing the hydroxyl group (colored blue in the illustration).

Many functional groups have a characteristic suffix designator, and only one such suffix (other than "-ene" and "-yne") may be used in a name. When the hydroxyl functional group is present together with a function of higher nomenclature priority, it must be cited and located by the prefix hydroxy and an appropriate number. For example, lactic acid has the IUPAC name 2-hydroxypropanoic acid.