Structure of Vitamin C

Vitamin C is L-ascorbic acid. Vitamin C is a radical inhibitor. Examine the structure and determine how many chiral centers there are. Then determine the configuration of these chirality centers using the R/S nomenclature. Note the conformations about the C-OH bonds. The alcohol groups of the 5-membered ring are oriented to the proximate oxygen to form hydrogen bonds.


Figure. The RHF/6-31G* optimized structure of vitamin C.