Why are saturated hydrocarbons generally unreactive under normal conditions?
They contain strong sigma (σ) bonds that require high energy to break.
Saturated hydrocarbons (alkanes such as methane, ethane, propane) contain only single covalent bonds – C–C and C–H. Every single bond is a sigma (σ) bond, formed by head-on overlap of orbitals, which makes it strong and stable.
Breaking these bonds needs a large amount of energy, and there are no reactive multiple bonds or polar groups, so alkanes are fairly unreactive under normal conditions. They react mainly under drastic conditions, e.g. combustion when ignited or substitution with chlorine in sunlight.
Alkanes are non-polar and insoluble in water; weak pi (π) bonds are present in unsaturated hydrocarbons (alkenes, alkynes), which is why those are more reactive; and alkanes do not burn spontaneously at room temperature – they need ignition.
Hence, saturated hydrocarbons are unreactive because they contain strong sigma (σ) bonds that require high energy to break.
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