What absorbs at 877 cm⁻¹ in an FTIR spectrum?
A band near 877 cm⁻¹ can point to several functional groups. Below are the most likely assignments, ranked by how much published evidence supports each — every one traceable to literature (DOI) and cross-validated against our 130,000+ reference spectra and knowledge graph.
Backed by 8 cited sources
Quick answer
A band near 877 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
| Functional group | Supporting facts | Cited sources | Top confidence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alkyl C-H | 3 | 2 | 1.0 |
| C-O single bond | 2 | 2 | 1.0 |
| Carbonate | 2 | 2 | 1.0 |
| Carbonyl (C=O) | 2 | 1 | 1.0 |
| Methacrylate | 2 | 1 | 1.0 |
| Acetate | 2 | 1 | 1.0 |
| Borate | 1 | 1 | 1.0 |
| Phosphate (PO4) | 1 | 1 | 1.0 |
| C c single bond | 1 | 1 | 1.0 |
| Methoxy (OCH3) | 1 | 1 | 1.0 |
| Aromatic ring | 1 | 1 | 1.0 |
| Carbohydrate | 1 | 1 | 1.0 |
| Metal oxygen | 1 | 1 | 0.9 |
| Ketone | 1 | 0 | 1.0 |
| Ester | 1 | 0 | 1.0 |
| Carboxyl (COOH) | 1 | 0 | 1.0 |
| Amide | 1 | 0 | 1.0 |
Ranking reflects accumulated literature evidence, not a single fixed rule. Always confirm against your sample context.
Possible materials
| Material | Supporting peaks | Overlapping groups | Cited sources |
|---|---|---|---|
| PHB | 877, 3440, 1724 | Carbonyl (C=O), Alkyl C-H, C-O single bond | 1 |
| CaCO3 | 877, 1141, 712 | Carbonate, Alkyl C-H, C-O single bond | 1 |
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 877 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
-
Carbohydrate confidence 1.0
“cm-1 877cm-1 are attributed to β-glycosidic bond.”
Liu 等 - 2006 - A study of the mushrooms of boletes by Fourier tra DOI: 10.1117/12.667136 -
confidence 1.0
“α-Phase are 877”
Abdullah 等 - 2014 - Effect of annealing process on the phase formation DOI: 10.1063/1.4895187 -
Carbonate confidence 1.0
“with the carbonate band at ~877 particles has a cooling The absorption signals further importance to notice that CaSO”
Askar 等 - 2022 - Chemical Composition, Optical Properties and Sourc DOI: 10.3389/fenvs.2022.929449 -
Alkyl C-H confidence 1.0
“A group of bands could be observed at 877 cm-1, 815 cm-1 and 750 cm-1, where the cm-1, cm-1 cm-1, bending vibration of C-H in the aromatic rings was characteristic [30].”
Fabrication of Glass Fiber Reinforced Composites Based on Bio-Oil Phenol Formaldehyde Resin DOI: 10.3390/ma9110886 -
Acetate confidence 1.0
“at corresponding to C-O-C asymmetric stretching frequency also was observed due to interaction of alumina 1132.521060.75 664.13 739.68 877cm-1 3309.68 Absorbance 3114.34 (b)”
El-Naggar - 2013 - Characterization of Modified and Polymer Coated Al DOI: 10.1155/2013/706960 -
C c single bond confidence 1.0
“The band at 1067 would be due to Ccm-1 O stretching vibration and the band at 877 would be related to C-C stretching vibration [19].”
Oliveira 等 - 2016 - FTIR analysis and quantification of phenols and fl DOI: 10.1590/S1517-707620160003.0072 -
confidence 1.0
“The band at 877 could also be caused by vibration stretching CH 1,8-Cineole (Schulz et al.”
Rahmawati 等 - 2020 - Isolation and Identification of Fungi Inhabiting R DOI: 10.1002/bit.260230921 -
Carbonyl (C=O) confidence 1.0
“cm-1 cm-1 ester appears at 1100 and 1305 A strong band at 1724 and a weak broad band at 877 are respectively assigned to the carbonyl and epoxy that obviously indicates a different environment in”
Salehabadi 等 - 2014 - Effect of Organo-Modified Nanoclay on the Thermal DOI: 10.3390/ma7064508
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