How do I tell the difference between an Enantiomer and Diastereomer?
The easiest way to tell apart an enantiomer and a diastereomer is to look at whether or not the compounds are mirror images of each other. The best way to learn this is through practice. Here are a few examples, see if you can determine whether or not the compounds are enantiomers, the same, or diastereomers. Hint: first determine if the compounds are mirror images of each other, and then find the individual stereochemistry around each chiral carbon. Remember the hand rule or the clockwise/counterclockwise arrangement discussed in the previous section. D If you are having problems determining the configuration at each stereocenter, I suggest building a model. A is a pair of diastereomers, because the configuration is S, S in the first compound and R,S in the second compound. B is a tricky one. They are both in the trans configuration and there is a plane of symmetry. Also, notice there is no carbon with four different groups. Therefore, they are not enantiomers and there is no stereoch
