Optical isomerism is shown by:a) Buta...
Optical isomerism is a type of stereoisomerism where two compounds have the same chemical formula and bonding pattern but differ in the spatial arrangement of their atoms. This phenomenon is shown by certain organic compounds that have a chiral center, which is a carbon atom that is bonded to four different groups.
Butanol is a four-carbon alcohol with the formula C4H10O. It has two isomers, butanol-1 and butanol-2, which differ in the position of the hydroxyl (-OH) group on the carbon chain. Butene is a four-carbon alkene with the formula C4H8. It also has two isomers, butene-1 and butene-2, which differ in the position of the double bond on the carbon chain.
Out of these four compounds, only butanol-2 shows optical isomerism because it has a chiral center. The carbon atom that bears the hydroxyl group is bonded to four different groups, namely, a hydrogen atom, a methyl group (-CH3), an ethyl group (-CH2CH3), and the hydroxyl group (-OH). Due to this arrangement, the molecule can exist in two mirror-image forms that cannot be superimposed on each other. These two forms are called enantiomers and have opposite effects on the plane of polarized light. Hence, butanol-2 is optically active.
On the other hand, butanol-1 does not have a chiral center, as the carbon atom that bears the hydroxyl group is bonded to two methyl groups and one ethyl group. Similarly, butene-1 and butene-2 do not show optical isomerism as they do not have a chiral center.
Optical isomerism is shown by:a) Buta...
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