Saturated fatty acids contain which of the following?

Saturated fatty acids contain which of the following?

• A. double bonds
• B. no double bonds
• C. triple bonds
• D. aromatic rings

Answer: (B)

Saturation describes how many carbon–carbon bonds are present in the fatty acid chain. In saturated fatty acids, every bond between neighboring carbons is a single bond, so each carbon holds as many hydrogens as possible. That leaves no double bonds along the chain. If a fatty acid had one or more double bonds, it would be unsaturated, which is typical of fats that are liquid at room temperature or contain cis-unsaturations. Triple bonds aren’t typical in fatty acid chains, and aromatic rings are not a feature of the standard linear fatty acid; they would imply a different class of compounds. Therefore, the defining trait of saturated fatty acids is the absence of double bonds.

Saturation describes how many carbon–carbon bonds are present in the fatty acid chain. In saturated fatty acids, every bond between neighboring carbons is a single bond, so each carbon holds as many hydrogens as possible. That leaves no double bonds along the chain. If a fatty acid had one or more double bonds, it would be unsaturated, which is typical of fats that are liquid at room temperature or contain cis-unsaturations. Triple bonds aren’t typical in fatty acid chains, and aromatic rings are not a feature of the standard linear fatty acid; they would imply a different class of compounds. Therefore, the defining trait of saturated fatty acids is the absence of double bonds.