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PPT: Aldehydes, Ketones and Carboxylic Acids

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FAQs on PPT: Aldehydes, Ketones and Carboxylic Acids

1. What's the difference between aldehydes and ketones in terms of their structure?
Ans. Aldehydes have a carbonyl group (C=O) bonded to at least one hydrogen atom and attached to a carbon chain, while ketones have the carbonyl group positioned between two carbon atoms with no hydrogen attached to it. This structural difference affects their chemical reactivity, oxidation properties, and how they respond to certain tests like Tollens' reagent, making aldehydes more easily oxidised than ketones.
2. How do I identify whether a compound is a carboxylic acid just by looking at its structure?
Ans. Carboxylic acids contain a carboxyl group (-COOH), consisting of a carbonyl carbon double-bonded to oxygen and single-bonded to a hydroxyl group. This functional group is always attached to a carbon chain or ring. The presence of -COOH at the end of a molecule is the defining characteristic that distinguishes carboxylic acids from aldehydes, ketones, and alcohols in structural analysis.
3. Why are carboxylic acids so much more acidic than alcohols even though both have -OH groups?
Ans. Carboxylic acids are significantly more acidic because the carboxyl group's carbonyl oxygen withdraws electron density, stabilising the conjugate base (carboxylate ion) through resonance delocalisation. This resonance stabilisation makes it easier for the proton to dissociate. Alcohols lack this resonance stabilisation mechanism, so their conjugate bases are much less stable, making them weaker acids by comparison.
4. What reactions happen when aldehydes get oxidised and how is that different from ketones?
Ans. Aldehydes oxidise readily to carboxylic acids through loss of the hydrogen bonded to the carbonyl carbon, a reaction that occurs with mild oxidising agents like Tollens' reagent or Fehling's reagent. Ketones resist oxidation under mild conditions because they lack a hydrogen attached to the carbonyl carbon; they require strong oxidising agents and harsher conditions to break the carbon skeleton, making aldehyde oxidation a useful test to distinguish them.
5. How do condensation reactions work with aldehydes and ketones to form bigger molecules?
Ans. Aldehydes and ketones undergo condensation reactions with nucleophiles like amines, alcohols, and water to form new compounds-imines, acetals, ketals, and hemiacetals. These reactions involve nucleophilic attack on the electrophilic carbonyl carbon, followed by water elimination or addition. The mechanism depends on the nucleophile's strength and reaction conditions, making carbonyl condensation central to organic synthesis and biochemical pathways.
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