Alcohol Reactions: Oxidation Reactions - Video Tutorials & Practice Problems

Alcohol Reactions: Oxidation Reactions

In this video, we're gonna take a look at alcohol reactions in terms of oxidation reactions. So we're gonna say here that the oxidizing agent of either sodium dichromate or potassium dichromate, they're interchangeable because sodium and potassium are both group one a elements. It's really the dichromate portion, that's the oxidizing agent. So here we have the oxidizing agent of either one of these dissolved in sulfuric acid reacts with an alcohol. Now, an oxidizing agent, this is the compound used to oxidize alcohols and you were going to say it add as many carbon oxygen bonds as possible without breaking any carbon carbon bonds. Now, if we take a look here, we're graying out our hydrocarbon and we're growing out our carbon dioxide, we're focused mainly on the shaded portion. This is the portion in organic chemistry, but we deal with oxidation reactions. So here we have an alcohol and this alcohol here, we could oxidize it to a carbonyl compound. Here in this example, we see it as an aldehyde, but it could also represent a ketone. OK. So here this middle section could represent an aldehyde or ketone. Then that could also further oxidized to give us a carbolic acid. So when we're talking about oxidation, we're really focusing on these types of functional groups, alcohols to alde hydro ketones to carbonic acid, if necessary. Now, just remember, we're trying to add as many carbon oxygen bonds without breaking any carbon carbon bonds. This is the rule that we have to follow to get our proper oxidized product.

Alcohol Reactions Oxidation Reactions Example

Here, it says, determine the product created under the following oxidation reaction. So here we have our alcohol, we have potassium dichromate as our oxidizing agent over sulfuric acid. So remember we wanna add as many carbon oxygen bonds without breaking any carbon carbon bonds. So if we take a look here, we have ch three ch two, ch two. And here it's gonna be important that I show the bonds that could potentially be affected for this alcohol. Now, we know that if we're oxidizing this, we know that we're gonna form at least our carbon double bonded to an oxygen. And if I do that, this carbon is already making three bonds, remember, it can only go up to four bonds here. If I just had it as an H here, we'd have an aldehyde. But have I gone the full distance to replace any carbon hydrogen bonds with as many carbon oxygen bonds? I haven't because I could remove this age and put an oxygen there. So I've made as many carbon oxygen bonds as possible. And remember I cannot break a carbon carbon bond. So this bond here is unaffected. So at the end, I would get a carbolic acid as my final product.

Determine the product created under the following oxidation reaction.

• A.
• B.
• C.
• D. $CH_3CH_2CH_2CH_2CH_3$

Which of the following alcohols cannot undergo an oxidation reaction?

• A. $2-butanol$
• B. $3-heptanol$
• C. $2-methyl-2-propanol$
• D. $1-propanol$