What happens when an aldehyde is treated with lithium aluminium hydride?a)Primary alcohol is formedb)Secondary alcohol is formedc)Tertiary alcohol is formedd)No reactionCorrect answer is option 'A'. Can you explain this answer?

Question

Answer

Reaction of Aldehyde with Lithium Aluminium Hydride:
When an aldehyde is treated with lithium aluminium hydride (LiAlH4), a reduction reaction takes place. This reaction is a nucleophilic addition reaction that results in the formation of a primary alcohol.

Steps of the Reaction:
- Lithium aluminium hydride acts as a strong reducing agent.
- The hydride ion (H-) from LiAlH4 attacks the electrophilic carbon in the carbonyl group of the aldehyde.
- This nucleophilic addition leads to the formation of an alkoxide intermediate.
- The alkoxide intermediate then undergoes a protonation step to yield the primary alcohol as the final product.

Key Points:
- The reduction of an aldehyde with lithium aluminium hydride results in the formation of a primary alcohol.
- This reaction is a useful method for synthesizing primary alcohols from aldehydes.
- The mechanism involves nucleophilic addition and protonation steps.
- The overall reaction can be represented as follows:
RCHO + LiAlH4 → RCH2OH
Therefore, when an aldehyde is treated with lithium aluminium hydride, the primary alcohol is formed as the end product.

Answer

LiAlH₄ acts as a reducing agent which reduces an aldehyde by adding hydrogen atoms to it result in the formation of a primary alcohol.

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