alkane

Alkanes are a type of hydrocarbon made up entirely of carbon and hydrogen atoms linked by single bonds. They are the simplest form of hydrocarbons and are generally found in fuels like gasoline and natural gas. Their structure consists of a chain or ring of carbon atoms, each bonded to enough hydrogen atoms to satisfy carbon's four bonds. Alkane molecules are generally unreactive, stable, and serve as a fundamental building block in organic chemistry. Examples include methane (CH₄), ethane (C₂H₆), and propane (C₃H₈).