What absorbs at 3016 cm⁻¹ in an FTIR spectrum?

Quick answer

A band near 3016 cm⁻¹ is usually interpreted by checking which functional groups repeatedly co-occur there in the literature, then confirming at least one or two additional peaks in the same sample. This page ranks those assignments by accumulated evidence rather than by a single fixed textbook rule.

Possible functional-group assignments

Ranking reflects accumulated literature evidence, not a single fixed rule. Always confirm against your sample context.

Possible materials

Materials are shown only when the same literature pool supports this band and at least one additional characteristic peak.

Spectrum logic

This band becomes meaningful only when read with its neighboring peaks. In practice, analysts first look at the assignments above, then check whether the same sample also shows other peaks expected for the same structural motif. A lone band near 3016 cm⁻¹ is usually not enough for material identification by itself.

Real-world usage

This type of query is common in polymer identification, unknown plastic screening, QC troubleshooting, recycled-material verification, and literature-backed peak assignment review.

Common mistakes

• Treating one isolated band as proof of a material without checking at least one or two supporting peaks.
• Ignoring overlap: multiple functional groups can contribute near the same wavenumber.
• Skipping validation when additives, blends, oxidation, or contamination may distort the spectrum.

Verification advice

When ambiguity remains, validate the hypothesis with DSC, GC-MS, or TGA, especially for blends, degraded samples, and filled polymers.

Literature behind these assignments

• Alkyl C-H confidence 1.0

  “LLM confirmed rule peak-group candidate”

  Structural Dependence and Spectroscopic Evidence of Methane Dissolution in Ionic Liquids DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcb.8b03178
• Alkyl C-H confidence 1.0

  “LLM confirmed rule peak-group candidate”

  Characterization of plastic degrading bacteria isolated from sewage wastewater DOI: 10.1016/j.sjbs.2023.103628
• Alkyl C-H confidence 1.0

  “CO peaks at 2113 and 2185 and CH peaks at 3016 It XRD and H 2-TPR show that adding ZnO to the NiO/ZrO 4 2”

  Study on the performance of NiO/ZnxZr1−x catalysts for CO2 hydrogenation DOI: 10.1039/d0ra07660k
• Alkene (C=C) confidence 1.0

  “In particular, the peak at cm-1 3016 is assigned to C=CH stretching of unsaturated lipids and CH aromatic stretch of proteins side chains.”

  ATR-FTIR spectroscopy of plasma supported by multivariate analysis discriminates multiple sclerosis disease DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-29617-6
• Alkyl C-H confidence 1.0

  “The peak at 3016 can also originate from DMN-DVB-C8) and at 241 and 410 (cid:3)C (for DMN-DVBthe unsaturated compounds (C-H stretching vibrations).”

  Studies of thermal properties of di(methacryloyloxymethyl)naphthalene–divinylbenzene (DMN–DVB) copolymer and its alkyl-bonded derivatives DOI: 10.1007/s10973-019-08150-7
• Alkyl C-H confidence 1.0

  “LLM confirmed rule peak-group candidate”

  TGA/FTIR study of the MCM-41-catalytic pyrolysis of tobacco and tobacco-glycerol mixtures DOI: 10.1016/j.tca.2014.04.017
• Alkyl C-H confidence 1.0

  “Explicit assignment: 'IR peak of CH at 3016'.”

  Portable Combination of Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy and Differential Mobility Spectrometry for Advanced Vapor Phase Analysis DOI: 10.1039/c8an01192c.
• Alkyl C-H confidence 1.0

  “Sharp band at 3016 arises from the C-H stretching mode (Velmurugan et al.”

  Actinomycetes mediated synthesis of gold nanoparticles from the culture supernatant of Streptomyces griseoruber with special reference to catalytic activity DOI: 10.1007/s13205-017-0930-3