Nomenclature of Carboxylic Acids

Carboxylic acids contain a carboxyl (-COOH) funtional group. Several carboxylic acids have been known since long and their common names are based on their sources. However, in the IUPAC nomenclature, carboxylic acids are named by choosing the longest carbon chain containing the -COOH group. The final -e in the name of the alkane is replaced by -oic acid.

Carboxylic acids containing two carboxyl groups are called dicarboxylic acids. They are named by adding dioic acid as a suffix to the name of the corresponding hydrocarbon. Both the carboxyl carbon atoms are numbered as a part of the main chain.