What is alcohol in chemistry? What is the functional group in an alcohol? AlcoholsAlcohols are non-hydrocarbons. It is a homologous series of organic compounds containing not only the elements carbon and hydrogen, but also oxygen. Alcohols contain the hydroxyl group, (– O – H) as their functional group. The hydroxyl group is the part of the alcohol … [Read more...] about What is alcohol and how is it made?