What does (en) stand for in Cu(en)2(H2O)2 complexes?

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Cu(en)2 ??

I was wondering what the (en) stood for in
[Cu(en)2(H2O)2]2+
I was surfing the web and noticed that it appeared in several articles. Thanks!
 

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(en) denotes ethylene diamine, C2H8N2.
 
t!m said:
(en) denotes ethylene diamine, C2H8N2.
No, ethylene diamime is [tex]\text{C}_2\text{H}_6\text{N}_2[/tex] :wink:
(six not eight, hydrogen atoms)

C2H8N2 is ethane diamine.
 
Last edited:
No, ethane-1,2-diamine, more commonly known as ethylenediamine, is [tex]\text{C}_2\text{H}_8\text{N}_2[/tex].

[tex]\text{C}_2\text{H}_6\text{N}_2[/tex] is something different.
 
While I may not know much about chemistry, 99% of the hits I got from google returned the formula- C2H8N2, thereby concurring with t!m.
 
t!m said:
No, ethane-1,2-diamine, more commonly known as ethylenediamine, is [tex]\text{C}_2\text{H}_8\text{N}_2[/tex].

[tex]\text{C}_2\text{H}_6\text{N}_2[/tex] is something different.

Ahh, so ethylenediamine is ethane-1,2-diamine...yes, in that case, it is [tex]\text{C}_2\text{H}_8\text{N}_2[/tex] :rolleyes:

(Not 1,2-diaminoethylene--i.e., that [itex]\text{C}_2\text{H}_6\text{N}_2[/itex] I mentioned before)
 
what is more important to know is that en=cure for poisonings from stuff like lead and other heavy metals.
 
H2N-CH2-CH2-NH2

and everything is clear :)