Compounds were classified as being either aliphatic or aromatic in the latter part of the nineteenth century. To be classified as aliphatic meant then that the chemical behavior of a compound was “fatlike”. To be classified as aromatic meant then that the compound had a low hydrogen/carbon ratio and that it was “fragrant
A ring that contains at least one heteroatom (an atom other than carbon) is called a heterocycle, and a substance based on a heterocyclic ring is a heterocyclic compound. Heterocyclic compounds containing N, O or S are by far the most common
