BRAINCAKEIdentifying Chiral Centres
To find a chiral centre, look for a carbon atom bonded to four different atoms or groups. Mark it with an asterisk (*).
A quick method:
1. Ignore any carbon in a C=C or C=O double bond (it has only three groups).
2. Ignore CH3 and CH2 carbons (they have two or more identical H atoms).
3. For each remaining carbon, list the four groups in full. Compare the whole group, not just the first atom: CH3 and CH2CH3 both start with C but are different groups.
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