Alcohols and Haloalkanes (Chapter 14 and 15) Flashcards
What is an alcohol?
An organic compound containing the functional group OH (R-OH)
What is the name for the OH group?
Hydroxyl group
When does the name of the alcohol have the suffix “ol”?
When it is the highest priority functional group in a molecule
When does the name of the alcohol have the prefix “hydroxy”?
When it is not the highest priority functional group in a molecule
When is an alcohol primary?
When the carbon atom adjacent (attached) to the OH group is bonded to two hydrogen atoms
When is an alcohol secondary?
When the carbon atom adjacent (attached) to the OH group is bonded to one hydrogen atom
When is an alcohol tertiary?
When the carbon atom adjacent (attached) to the OH group is not bonded to hydrogen
How do the physical properties of alcohols compare to those of corresponding alkanes? (alcohol vs alkane with same number of carbons)
Less volatile
Higher melting points
Greater water solubility
How do the differences between the physical properties of alcohols change as the carbon chain becomes longer?
The differences become much smaller as the length of the carbon chain increases
Explain the differences between the physical properties of alkanes and alcohols (considering bond polarity and the effects on the intermolecular forces)
- The alkanes have non-polar bonds because the electronegativity of H and C are very similar
- The alkane molecules are therefore non-polar
- The intermolecular forces between non-polar molecules are very weak London forces
- Alcohols have a polar OH bond because of the difference in electronegativity between the O and H atoms
- Alcohol molecules are therefore polar
- The intermolecular forces will be very weak London forces but there will also be much stronger hydrogen bonds between the polar OH groups
Why do alcohols have a lower volatility and higher boiling point than alkanes?
- In the liquid state, H bonds hold the alcohol molecules together
- These bonds must be broken in order to change the liquid alcohol into a gas
- This requires more energy than overcoming the weaker London forces in alkanes, so alcohols have a lower volatility than the alkanes with the same number of carbon atoms
What makes a compound much more soluble in water than other compounds?
If it can form H bonds with water
Why are certain alcohols soluble in water and alkanes are not?
- Alkanes are non-polar molecules and cannot form H bonds with water
- Alcohols such as methanol and ethanol are completely soluble in water, as hydrogen bonds form between the polar OH group of the alcohol and the water molecules
- The energy gained from H bonding with water is enough to break the London forces between alcohol molecules
Why does solubility of alcohols decrease as the length of the hydrocarbon chain increases?
- As the hydrocarbon chain increases in size, the influence of the OH group becomes relatively smaller, and the solubility of the longer-chain alcohols becomes more like that of hydrocarbons, so solubility decreases
- The energy gained from H bonding with water is not enough to break the larger number of London forces between alcohol molecules
Describe the combustion of alcohols
- Alcohols burn completely in a plentiful supply of oxygen to produce carbon dioxide and water
- The reaction is exothermic, releasing a large quantity of energy in the form of heat
- As the number of carbon atoms in the alcohol chain increases, the quantity of heat released per mole increases
How can alcohols be oxidised?
- Primary and secondary alcohols can be oxidised by an oxidising agent
What is the usual oxidising mixture used to oxidise alcohols?
A solution of potassium dichromate (VI) (K2Cr2O7), acidified with dilute sulfuric acid (H2SO4)
How can you tell when an alcohol has been oxidised?
The orange solution containing dichromate (VI) ions is reduced to a green solution containing chromium (III) ions
What are the two possible products of the oxidation of a primary alcohol?
Aldehyde or carboxylic acid
What does the product of oxidation of primary alcohols depend on?
The reaction conditions (distillation/reflux) used because aldehydes are themselves also oxidised to carboxylic acids
Describe the preparation of aldehydes from the oxidation of primary alcohols
- On gentle heating of primary alcohols with acidified potassium dichromate, an aldehyde is formed
- To ensure that the aldehyde is prepared rather than the carboxylic acid, the aldehyde is distilled out of the reaction mixture as it forms
- This prevents any further reaction with the oxidising agent
- The dichromate ions change from orange to green
What is the symbol used to represent the oxidising agent?
[O]
Why do aldehydes have a lower BP than alcohols?
Because they have weaker H-bonding
Describe the preparation of carboxylic acids from the oxidation of primary alcohols
- If a primary alcohol is heated strongly under reflux, with an excess of acidified potassium dichromate (VI), a carboxylic acid is formed
- Use of an excess of the acidified potassium dichromate (VI) ensures that all of the alcohol is oxidised
- Heating under reflux ensures that any aldehyde formed initially in the reaction also undergoes oxidation to the carboxylic acid
- Once the reaction has gone to completion, the carboxylic acid can then be distilled or recrystallised
What is important to remember about the oxidation producing carboxylic acid equation?
That the ratio of the alcohol to the oxidising agent is 1:2 - 2[O]
(summary) How do you prepare a carboxylic acid?
Heat a primary alcohol under reflux
(summary) How do you prepare an aldehyde?
Use distillation to remove the aldehyde from the reaction mixture
What is the product of oxidising a secondary alcohol?
Ketone
Is it possible to further oxidise ketones?
Not with acidified dichromate (VI) ions
Describe the preparation of ketones from the oxidation of secondary alcohols
- To ensure the reaction goes to completion, the secondary alcohol is heated under reflux with the oxidising mixture
- The dichromate (VI) ions once again change colour from orange to green
Can tertiary alcohols undergo oxidation reactions?
No, the acidified dichromate (VI) remains orange when added to a tertiary alcohol
What is a dehydration reaction?
Any reaction in which a water molecule is removed from the starting material
Describe the dehydration reaction of an alcohol
- An alcohol is heated under reflux in the presence of an acid catalyst such as concentrated sulfuric acid (H2SO4) or concentrated phosphoric acid (H3PO4)
- The product of the reaction is an alkene (and water)
What is dehydration of an alcohol an example of?
An elimination reaction
What is the example of a substitution reaction of alcohols?
Alcohols react with hydrogen halides to form haloalkanes
How do you prepare a haloalkane?
- The alcohol is heated under reflux with sulfuric acid and a sodium halide
- The hydrogen halide is formed in situ
- The hydrogen halide formed reacts with the alcohol to produce the haloalkane