Article · Wikipedia archive · Last revised Jun 20, 2026

Monohalomethane

The monohalomethanes are organic compounds in which a hydrogen atom in methane is replaced by a halogen. They belong to the haloalkanes or to the subgroup of halomethanes.

Last revised
Jun 20, 2026
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Structural formula
Name Fluoromethane
Methyl fluoride
Chloromethane
Methyl chloride
Bromomethane
Methyl bromide
Iodomethane
Methyl iodide
Melting point −137,8 °C1 −97,4 °C2 −93,7 °C3 −66 °C4
Boiling point −78,4 °C1 −23,8 °C2 4,0 °C3 42 °C4
Space-filling model

The monohalomethanes are organic compounds in which a hydrogen atom in methane is replaced by a halogen. They belong to the haloalkanes or to the subgroup of halomethanes.

The four commona members are fluoromethane, chloromethane, bromomethane and iodomethane.

Historical name for this group is methyl halides; it's still widely used. The compounds of this class are often described as CH3X or MeX (X - any halogen, Me - methyl group).

There are analogs with more than one hydrogen atom in methane is replaced by a halogen:

Analogs with carbon atom replaced with a heavier group 14 element are also known:

See also

See also

Notes

Notes

  1. Highly radioactive CH3At (methyl astatide) has been detected.5 The known isotopes of even heavier group 17 element, tennessine, are too short-lived to allow for chemical experimentation.
References

References