<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<term>
  <id>05003</id>
  <title>quaternary ammonium compounds</title>
  <longtitle>IUPAC Gold Book - quaternary ammonium compounds</longtitle>
  <doi>10.1351/goldbook.Q05003</doi>
  <code>Q05003</code>
  <status>current</status>
  <definitions>
    <item>
      <id>1</id>
      <text>Derivatives of ammonium compounds, $\ce{(NH4^{+})Y^{−}}$, in which all four of the hydrogens bonded to nitrogen have been replaced with hydrocarbyl groups.</text>
      <notes>
        <item>Compounds having a carbon-nitrogen double bond (i.e. $\ce{R2C=N^{+}R2Y^{−}}$) are more accurately called iminium compounds.</item>
      </notes>
      <exams>
        <item>$\ce{[(CH3)4N]^{+}OH^{−}}$, tetramethylammonium hydroxide.</item>
      </exams>
      <links>
        <item>
          <term>ammonium compounds</term>
          <url>https://goldbook.iupac.org//terms/view/A00290</url>
        </item>
        <item>
          <term>hydrocarbyl</term>
          <url>https://goldbook.iupac.org//terms/view/H02891</url>
        </item>
        <item>
          <term>iminium compounds</term>
          <url>https://goldbook.iupac.org//terms/view/I02958</url>
        </item>
        <item>
          <term>onium compounds</term>
          <url>https://goldbook.iupac.org//terms/view/O04291</url>
        </item>
      </links>
      <sources>
        <item>PAC, 1995, 67, 1307. 'Glossary of class names of organic compounds and reactivity intermediates based on structure (IUPAC Recommendations 1995)' on page 1361 (https://doi.org/10.1351/pac199567081307)</item>
      </sources>
    </item>
  </definitions>
  <altoutputs>
    <html>https://goldbook.iupac.org/terms/view/Q05003/html</html>
    <json>https://goldbook.iupac.org/terms/view/Q05003/json</json>
    <plain>https://goldbook.iupac.org/terms/view/Q05003/plain</plain>
  </altoutputs>
  <citation>Citation: 'quaternary ammonium compounds' in IUPAC Compendium of Chemical Terminology, 5th ed. International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry; 2025. Online version 5.0.0, 2025. 10.1351/goldbook.Q05003</citation>
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  <disclaimer>The International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) is continuously reviewing and, where needed, updating terms in the Compendium of Chemical Terminology (the IUPAC Gold Book). Users of these terms are encouraged to include the version of a term with its use and to check regularly for updates to term definitions that you are using.</disclaimer>
  <accessed>2026-05-06T10:27:42+00:00</accessed>
</term>
