Why is the chair conformation of cyclohexane more stable?
3D model · turn it, step through it, tap the parts
An interactive 3D scene of cyclohexane as a chair and a boat: puckering keeps C–C–C angles near 109.5°, the chair's C–H bonds are all staggered while the boat's sides are eclipsed and its two flagpole hydrogens crowd each other, so the chair, free of angle, torsional and steric strain, sits about 29 kJ/mol lower.