In chemistry, a chemical trap is a chemical compound that is used to detect a certain molecule [1] when
- the concentration of this molecule is very small and below detection limit
- the molecule is very reactive (for example cyclobutadiene) and it is not possible to isolate or detect it by spectroscopic means
- the molecule is an enantiomer present in a racemate.
With the reaction product of the chemical trap and the molecule in question it is possible to
- quantify the amount
- prove the existence of the molecule
References
- ^ March, Jerry (1985), Advanced Organic Chemistry: Reactions, Mechanisms, and Structure (3rd ed.), New York: Wiley, ISBN 0-471-85472-7
This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)
