bitene

Bitene is a nonstandard term sometimes used to describe hydrocarbons that contain exactly two carbon–carbon double bonds. It is not a formal IUPAC name, and in contemporary chemistry the class is usually referred to more precisely as dienes or, for specific structures, as alkadienes. The term appears mainly in historical or pedagogical contexts and is not assigned to a single, specific compound.

In practice, describing a molecule as a bitene would imply two C=C bonds within the carbon framework, which can be arranged in different ways. The double bonds may be conjugated (as in 1,3-dienes), non-conjugated, or cumulated in an allene-like motif. To avoid ambiguity, chemists typically use systematic names such as alkadiene with explicit locants, for example 1,3-pentadiene or 1,4-hexadiene, depending on the carbon skeleton.

Relation to broader chemistry: dienes are fundamental in organic synthesis and polymer chemistry. They participate in key reactions such as the Diels–Alder cycloaddition and serve as monomers or subunits in various polymers and natural products. The generic label bitene has largely fallen out of routine use in favor of precise nomenclature that specifies the position and nature of the double bonds.

See also: Diene, Alkadiene, Conjugated dienes, Allene, Diels–Alder reaction.