Inorganic chemistry

Inorganic chemistry is the branch of chemistry concerned with the properties and reactions of inorganic compounds. This includes all chemical compounds except the many which are based upon chains or rings of carbon atoms, which are termed organic compounds and are studied under the separate heading of organic chemistry. The distinction between the two disciplines is not absolute and there is much overlap, most importantly in the sub-discipline of organometallic chemistry.

Categories of inorganic chemical reactions

There are four categories of inorganic chemical reactions: combination reactions, decomposition reactions, single displacement reactions, and double displacement reactions.

Branches of inorganic chemistry

Major branches of inorganic chemistry include

Minerals, such as salt, asbestos, silicates, ...
Metals and their alloys, like iron, copper, aluminium, brass, bronze, ...
Compounds involving non-metallic elements, like silicon, phosphorus, chlorine, oxygen, for example water
Metal complexes

Commercially important inorganic substances include silicon chips, transistors, LCD screens, fiber optical cables and a great many catalysts.

Inorganic chemistry is based upon physical chemistry and forms the basis for mineralogy and materials chemistry. It often overlaps with geochemistry, analytical chemistry, environmental chemistry and organometallic chemistry.

Organometallic chemistry combines aspects of organic chemistry with those of inorganic chemistry, and is formally defined as the study of compounds containing metal-carbon bonds, although many "organometallic compounds" contain no such bonds. Among the simplest organometallic compounds are the metal carbonyls, in which carbon monoxide binds to a metal through the carbon. Vitamin B12, whose active site is similar to that of haemoglobin, is a naturally-occurring, metabolically-important organometallic compound containing large organic components (corrin and protein) and a metal, cobalt, bonded to carbon.

The range of inorganic chemistry includes both molecular compounds, which exist as discrete molecules, and crystals, whose structures are described by infinite lattices of regularly-ordered atoms and which are studied by crystallography and solid-state chemistry.

v t e Branches of chemistry
Glossary of chemical formulae List of biomolecules List of inorganic compounds Periodic table
Analytical	Instrumental chemistry Electroanalytical methods Spectroscopy IR Raman UV-Vis NMR Mass spectrometry EI ICP MALDI Separation process Chromatography GC HPLC Crystallography Characterization Titration Wet chemistry Calorimetry Elemental analysis
Theoretical	Quantum chemistry Computational chemistry Mathematical chemistry Molecular modelling Molecular mechanics Molecular dynamics Molecular geometry VSEPR theory
Physical	Electrochemistry Spectroelectrochemistry Photoelectrochemistry Thermochemistry Chemical thermodynamics Surface science Interface and colloid science Micromeritics Cryochemistry Sonochemistry Structural chemistry Chemical physics Molecular physics Femtochemistry Chemical kinetics Spectroscopy Photochemistry Spin chemistry Microwave chemistry Equilibrium chemistry Mechanochemistry
Inorganic	Coordination chemistry Magnetochemistry Organometallic chemistry Organolanthanide chemistry Cluster chemistry Solid-state chemistry Ceramic chemistry
Organic	Stereochemistry Alkane stereochemistry Physical organic chemistry Organic reactions Organic synthesis Retrosynthetic analysis Enantioselective synthesis Total synthesis / Semisynthesis Fullerene chemistry Polymer chemistry Petrochemistry Dynamic covalent chemistry
Biological	Biochemistry Molecular biology Cell biology Chemical biology Bioorthogonal chemistry Medicinal chemistry Pharmacology Clinical chemistry Neurochemistry Bioorganic chemistry Bioorganometallic chemistry Bioinorganic chemistry Biophysical chemistry
Interdisciplinarity	Nuclear chemistry Radiochemistry Radiation chemistry Actinide chemistry Cosmochemistry / Astrochemistry / Stellar chemistry Geochemistry Biogeochemistry Photogeochemistry Environmental chemistry Atmospheric chemistry Ocean chemistry Clay chemistry Carbochemistry Food chemistry Carbohydrate chemistry Food physical chemistry Agricultural chemistry Soil chemistry Chemistry education Amateur chemistry General chemistry Clandestine chemistry Forensic chemistry Forensic toxicology Post-mortem chemistry Nanochemistry Supramolecular chemistry Chemical synthesis Green chemistry Click chemistry Combinatorial chemistry Biosynthesis Chemical engineering Stoichiometry Materials science Metallurgy Ceramic engineering Polymer science
See also	History of chemistry Nobel Prize in Chemistry Timeline of chemistry of element discoveries "The central science" Chemical reaction Catalysis Chemical element Chemical compound Atom Molecule Ion Chemical substance Chemical bond Alchemy Quantum mechanics
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