TOPIC 6 Organic Chemistry Flashcards
A saturated hydrocarbon molecule contains four carbon atoms. How many hydrogen atoms does it have in a molecule?
10
Consider the compound with the formula C2F4
(a) Is it an organic compound? Explain your answer
(b) Is it saturated or unsaturated? Explain your answer
(a) yes because it contains carbon atoms
(b) unsaturated as it contains a C=C double bond
What is structural isomerism?
Same molecular formula, different structural formula
What is chain isomerism?
A type of structural isomerism when molecules have different carbon chains
What is position isomerism?
A type of structural isomerism when the same functional group is attached in different positions on the same carbon chain
What is stereoisomerism?
Same molecular formula, same structural formula but different arrangement
What is geometric isomerism?
A type of stereoisomerism when the C=C bond fixes the position of the atoms or groups attached at different positions
Why does cis-trans notation not work with all compounds?
Because there needs to be a double bond for it to occur
When naming E-Z isomers, what does priority mean?
The atom with the highest atomic number
What are the three types of fossil fuel?
Coal, crude oil and natural gas
Which organic compound are crude oil and natural gas mainly composed of?
Alkanes
What are the three main ways in which crude oil is converted into fuels?
Fractional distillation
Cracking
Reforming
How does fractional distillation work?
Crude oil is heated in a furnace and then passed into a column where it condenses based on each compounds boiling point
What type of compounds condense at the bottom of a fractioning column?
Large molecules, with longer chains and higher boiling temperatures
What type of compounds condense at the top of a fractioning column?
Small molecules, with shorter chains and lower boiling temperatures
What does cracking do?
Break long chain molecules into shorter chain molecules
Why is cracking used?
there is a surplus in longer chain molecules and they do not have many uses but there is a high demand for shorter chained molecules as they are better fuels and can be used to make other substances such as polymers
How is cracking carried out?
The hydrocarbons are passed through a heated catalyst, usually zeolite
What is reforming?
Converting straight-chains alkanes into branched and cyclic alkanes
Why is reforming done?
Because straight chain alkanes burn less effectively than branched and cyclic ones
How is reforming carried out
The straight chain alkanes is heated with a catalyst (usually platinum)
One molecule of the alkane C12H26 is cracked to form two molecules of ethene and one molecule of a different alkane. What is the molecular formula of the alkane formed?
C8H18
The products of a cracking reaction are two molecules of ethene and one molecule of pentane. What is the molecular formula of the alkane cracked?
C9H20
Why are alkanes burned? Give an example
To provide energy such as propane which is sold in containers at higher pressure for used as a fuel in homes and when camping
Why does incomplete combustion sometimes occur? (2)
Insufficient oxygen
Combustion is very rapid
When carbon is produced during complete combustion, how is it seen and what other products are formed?
Smoke in the air or spot on the burner
Carbon dioxide and water
Why is carbon monoxide deadly?
It is a toxic gas that prevents the transport of oxygen around the body
What else can sometimes occur in incomplete combustion and what happens when this occurs?
The hydrocarbon doesn’t burn at all and a small proportion of the hydrocarbons are released into the atmosphere unchanged ( known as unburned hydrocarbons , HC )
What else can be found in crude oil and why are they difficult to remove?
Atoms containing sulphur , cannot be removed by fractional distillation , cracking or reforming
What are the chemical reactions that occur with sulphur atoms during combustion? (2)
S + O2 —> SO2
2SO2 + O2 —> 2SO3
SO2 and SO3 are acidic oxides- what does this mean and what are the chemical reactions?
They dissolve in water in the atmosphere:
SO2 + H2O —> H2SO3 ( sulphurous acid )
SO3 + H2O —> H2SO4 ( sulphuric acid )
What do sulphurous acid and sulphuric acid contribute to and what is the effect of this?
Formation of acid rain - responsible for a lot of environmental damage , including damage to aquatic life in lakes and rivers , and damage to crops and forests
What are the equations for the combustion of alkanes containing nitrogen, what conditions are needed and what are the properties of some of the products? (3)
All occur at high temperatures
N2 + O2 —> 2NO
2NO + O2 —> 2NO2 —> acidic , can dissolve
2NO2 + H2O —> HNO2 + HNO3 —> both contribute to environmental damage
What metals do catalytic converters contain (3) and how are they made?
Platinum , palladium and rhodium
Spread thinly over a honeycomb mesh to increase the surface area
Which pollutants do 3-way catalytic converters remove?
Carbon Monoxide , unburned hydrocarbons and oxides of nitrogen
What are the 3 chemical reactions that occur in 3-way catalysts?
2CO + O2 —> 2CO2 ( oxidation of CO )
C8H18 + 12.5O2 —> 8CO2 + 9H2O ( oxidation of unburned hydrocarbons )
2NO + 2CO —> N2 + 2CO2
Which type of compounds are catalysts which are currently used not very good are getting rid of?
Sulphur compounds
What is the best way to prevent sulphur based pollution?
Remove the sulphur compounds before the fuel is burned
Summarise information about the products of combustion of alkanes, including names and whether complete or incomplete combustion was involved
Complete combustion: carbon dioxide and water
Incomplete combustion: carbon , carbon dioxide and water OR carbon monoxide , carbon dioxide and water
No carbon dioxide is formed when hydrogen is burned. Suggest why hydrogen is not a carbon neutral fuel.
Hydrogen does not occur naturally, it has to be manufactured. This uses energy, some of which comes from burning fossil fuels.
Summarise reasons why biofuel may not be carbon neutral.
The plants from which biofuels are obtained may need fertilising by pesticides produced from organic chemicals. The plants are then harvested, transported and processed using energy from fossil fuels.
What are the 3 mains concerns about the combustion of fossil fuels?
Pollution caused by combustion
The depletion of natural resources
Global warming and climate change
What is the purpose of biofuels?
Type of new fuel that is an alternative to fossil fuels
What are some examples of renewable resources? (5)
Biofuels Sunlight Wind Waves and tides Geothermal energy
What are some examples of non-renewable resources? (3)
Coal
Oil
Natural gas
What is carbon neutrality in the example of wood?
If a tree is cut down and the wood is burned, then carbon dioxide is formed in combustion - if the amount formed is the same as the amount absorbed then the wood is carbon neutral as the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere has not been altered by its combustion
Why are fossil fuels, such as those formed from trees, not carbon neutral?
The carbon dioxide was absorbed from the atmosphere millions of years ago when the amount in the atmosphere was much higher. Therefore, when fossil fuels are burned, the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere increases
What is biodiesel?
Starting materials - present in vegetable oils such as those obtained from rapeseed and sunflowers
Proving a very effective alternative to ordinary diesel and can also be mixed with ordinary diesel
What are bioalcohols?
Most common is bioethanol
Refers to the ethanol produced in a different way involving bacterial rather than enzymes —> also possible to use a much wider range of plants and also plant waste
The upper limit to the amount of ethanol that can be obtained from a given amount of starting material is increasing and is much fighter than fermentation
Why are alkanes fairly unreactive?
They contain only carbon and hydrogen atoms and single bonds
The bonds are not very polar and so do not undergo reactions with substances that are considered to be very unreactive , such as acids and alkalis and reactive metals
What do mechanisms do?
Try to explain the actual changes that occur during a reaction, especially in the bonding between the atoms.
Under what conditions does the chlorination of methane occur?
High temperatures OR
Room temperature if the mixture is exposed to ultraviolet radiation
What is step 1 in the halogenation of an alkane?
Initiation
UV radiation breaks down the chlorine molecule into chlorine atoms
Each chlorine atom takes one electron from the shared pair
This kind of bond breaking is called homolytic fission
What is step 2 in the halogenation of an alkane
Propagation
The halogen radical collided with the alkane molecules and they react by removing a hydrogen atom.
The alkyl radical formed then reacts with the halogen molecules
Both equations involve one radical reacting with one radical and produce one radical and one molecule
The 2 steps considered together result in the conversion of an alkane into a halogenoalkane
What is step 3 in the reaction of a halogen with an alkane?
Termination reactions
When 2 radicals collide to form a molecule as the unpaired electrons are shared to form a covalent bond
What are further substitution reactions and why do they sometimes occur?
When the hydrogen atoms in the product are replaced one by one with the halogen
It is not easy to prevent them from occurring
The general formula for alkenes is CnH2n.
Why does cyclohexene not have this general formula?
It is a cyclic structure , so it has two fewer hydrogen atoms than the corresponding non-cyclic compound
Alkenes are not used as fuels because they are more valuable for other purposes, but they do burn very well. Write an equation for the complete combustion of propene.
C3H6 + 4.5O2 —> 3CO2 + 3H2O