Editing Structural isomer (section)

==Skeletal isomerism==
A '''skeletal isomer''' of a compound is a structural isomer that differs from it in the atoms and bonds that are considered to comprise the "skeleton" of the molecule.  For [[organic compound]]s, such as [[alkanes]], that usually means the carbon atoms and the bonds between them.

For example, there are three skeletal isomers of [[pentane]]: ''n''-pentane (often called simply "pentane"), [[isopentane]] (2-methylbutane) and [[neopentane]] (dimethylpropane).<ref name=slan1986/>

{| align="center" class="wikitable skin-invert-image"
|-
|+Skeletal isomers of pentane
|-
|[[File:Pentane-2D-Skeletal.svg|125px]]
|[[File:Isopentane-2D-skeletal.svg|125px]]
|[[File:Neopentane-2D-skeletal.png|100px]]
|-
| ''n''-[[Pentane]]
| [[Isopentane]]
| [[Neopentane]]
|}

If the skeleton is [[cyclic compound|acyclic]], as in the above example, one may use the term  '''chain isomerism'''.