Open Question
Household soap is a mixture of the sodium or potassium salts of long-chain carboxylic acids that arise from saponification of animal fat.
b. Draw the structures of the soap molecules produced in the following reaction: <IMAGE>
16. Carboxylic Acids and Their Derivatives
Ester Reactions: Saponification
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Join thousands of students who trust us to help them ace their exams!Watch the first videoMultiple Choice
Name alcohol formed when the following ester undergoes a saponification reaction.
A
4-methyl-4-butanol
B
2-methyl-4-butanol
C
2-methyl-1-butanol
D
2-methylhexanoate
Verified step by step guidance1
Identify the ester functional group in the given structure. The ester linkage is characterized by the presence of a carbonyl group (C=O) adjacent to an oxygen atom (O) that is bonded to another carbon chain.
Recognize that saponification is a hydrolysis reaction where an ester reacts with a base, typically sodium hydroxide (NaOH), to form an alcohol and a carboxylate salt.
Determine the alcohol part of the ester. In the given structure, the alkyl group attached to the oxygen atom (right side of the ester linkage) will form the alcohol upon saponification.
Analyze the structure of the alkyl group attached to the oxygen atom. This group is a 2-methylbutyl group, which upon hydrolysis will form 2-methyl-1-butanol.
Conclude that the alcohol formed from the saponification of the given ester is 2-methyl-1-butanol, as the alkyl group attached to the oxygen atom becomes the alcohol.
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