12.

ALDEHYDES, KETONES AND CARBOXYLIC ACIDS

These are compounds containing carbon-oxygen double bond (>C=O) called carbonyl group. In aldehydes, the
carbonyl group is bonded to a carbon and hydrogen while in ketones, it is bonded to two carbon atoms. The carbonyl
compounds in which carbonyl group is bonded to oxygen are known as carboxylic acids, and their derivatives (e.g. esters,
anhydrides) while in compounds where carbon is attached to nitrogen and to halogens are called amides
and acyl halides respectively. The general formulas of these compounds are:

Aldehydes and Ketones

Nomenclature:
The common names of most aldehydes are derived from the common names of the corresponding carboxylic
acids by replacing the ending –ic acid with aldehyde. The position of the substituent in the carbon chain is indicated by
Greek letters α, β, γ, δ, etc.
The common names of ketones are derived by naming two alkyl or aryl groups bonded to the carbonyl group and
by suffixing ketone. The positions of the substituents are indicated by Greek letters, α α′, β β′ and so on.
The IUPAC names of open chain aliphatic aldehydes and ketones are derived from the names of the
corresponding alkanes by replacing the ending –e with ‘–al’ and ‘–one’ respectively. In case of aldehydes the longest
carbon chain is numbered starting from the carbon of the aldehyde group while in case of ketones the numbering begins
from the end nearer to the carbonyl group.
Some examples are:
Compound Common name IUPAC name
ALDEHYDES
HCHO Formaldehyde Methanal
CH3CHO Acetaldehyde Ethanal
(CH3)2CHCHO Isobutyraldehyde 2-Methylpropanal
CH3CH(OCH3)CHO α-Methoxypropionaldehyde 2-Methoxypropanal

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CH3CH2CH2CH2CHO Valeraldehyde Pentanal
CH2=CHCHO Acrolein Prop-2-enal

Phthaldehyde Benzene-1,2-dicarbaldehyde

3-Bromobenzenecarbaldehyde
m-Bromobenzaldehyde Or
3-Bromobenzaldehyde

KETONES
CH3COCH3 Acetone Propanone
CH3COCH2CH3 Ethyl methyl ketone Butanone
CH3COCH2CH2CH3 Methyl n-propyl ketone Pentan-2-one
CH3CH2COCH2CH3 Diethyl ketone Pentan-3-one
(CH3)2CHCOCH(CH3)2 Diisopropyl ketone 2,4-Dimethylpentan-3-one
(CH3)2C=CHCOCH3 Mesityl oxide 4-Methylpent-3-en-2-one

α-Methylcyclohexanone 2-Methylcyclohexanone

Preparation of Aldehydes and Ketones

1. By oxidation of alcohols: Primary alcohols on oxidation with mild oxidising agents like CrO3 to give aldehydes
while secondary alcohols give ketones.
R-CH2OH [O] R-CHO
R2CHOH [O] R2CO
2. By dehydrogenation of alcohols: Alcohols when heated with Cu or Silver catalyst at 573K, we get carbonyl
compounds. Primary alcohols give aldehydes, while secondary alcohols give ketones.
R-CH2OH Cu/573 K R-CHO
R2CHOH Cu/573 K R2CO
3. By ozonolysis of alkenes: Alkenes add ozone followed by hydrolysis with zinc dust and water, we get aldehydes
or ketones.

4. By hydration of alkynes: Alkynes add water in the presence of H2SO4 and HgSO4 to give carbonyl compounds.
Ethyne (acetylene) gives acetaldehyde and all other alkynes give ketones.

CH ≡ CH + H2O H2SO4/HgSO4 CH3-CHO

Ethyne Acetaldehyde
CH3-C ≡ CH + H2O H2SO4/HgSO4 CH3-CO-CH3

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 Propyne Acetone

Preparation of Aldehydes
1. From acyl chloride (Acid chloride) [Rosenmund’s Reduction]:
Acid chlorides react with hydrogen in presence of Pd supported on BaSO4, we get aldehydes. This reaction is
called Rosenmund’s reduction.
R-COCl + H2 Pd/BaSO4 R-CHO + HCl

Benzoyl chloride Benzaldehyde

2. From nitriles and esters:
Nitriles when reduced with stannous chloride in the presence of hydrochloric acid, we get imines, which on
hydrolysis give corresponding aldehyde. This reaction is called Stephen reaction.
RCN + SnCl2 + HCl R-CH=NH H3O+ R-CHO
Nitriles can also be selectively reduced by diisobutylaluminium hydride (DIBAL-H) to imines followed by hydrolysis to
aldehydes. DIBAL-H does not affect other reducable groups like double bonds.
R-CN 1. AlH(i-Bu)2 R-CHO
2. H2O
CH3-CH=CH-CH2-CN 1. DIBAL-H CH3-CH=CH-CH2-CHO
2 H2O
Esters are also reduced to aldehydes with DIBAL-H.
CH3-CH2-COOCH3 1. DIBAL-H CH3-CH2-CHO
2. H2O
Preparation of Aromatic aldehydes:
1. By oxidation of methylbenzene:
Methyl benzenes when oxidised by using mild oxidising agents like chromyl chloride (CrO2Cl2) or chromic oxide (CrO3)
in acetic anhydride, we get benzaldehyde.
Chromyl chloride oxidises methyl group to a chromium complex, which on hydrolysis gives corresponding
benzaldehyde. This reaction is called Etard reaction.

On treating with chromic oxide in acetic anhydride, methyl benzene is converted to benzylidene diacetate which
on acidification gives benzaldehyde.

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 2. By side chain chlorination followed by hydrolysis:
Side chain chlorination of toluene gives benzal chloride, which on hydrolysis gives benzaldehyde. This method is used
for the manufacture of benzaldehyde.

3. By Gatterman – Koch reaction:

When benzene is treated with carbon monoxide and hydrogen chloride in the presence of anhydrous aluminium
chloride or cuprous chloride, we get benzaldehyde. This reaction is known as Gatterman-Koch reaction.

Preparation of Ketones
1. From acyl chlorides: Acid chlorides react with dialkylcadmium, we get ketones. Dialkyl cadmium is prepared by
the reaction of cadmium chloride with Grignard reagent.
2 R-MgX + CdCl2 R2Cd + 2Mg(X)Cl
2 R’-COCl + R2Cd 2 R’-CO-R + CdCl2
2. From nitriles: Nitriles add Grignard reagent followed by hydrolysis gives ketones.

3. From benzene or substituted benzenes [Friedel – Crafts acylation reaction]

When benzene or substituted benzene is treated with acid chloride (R-COCl) in the presence of anhydrous aluminium
chloride, we get a ketone. This reaction is known as Friedel-Crafts acylation reaction.

Physical Properties of Aldehydes and Ketones

1. Boiling Point:
The boiling points of aldehydes and ketones are higher than hydrocarbons and ethers of comparable molecular
masses. It is due to dipole-dipole interactions which results in weak molecular association. But their boiling points are
lower than those of alcohols of similar molecular masses due to absence of intermolecular hydrogen bonding.
2. Solubility:

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 The lower members of aldehydes and ketones are miscible with water in all proportions, because they form hydrogen
bond with water. But the solubility decreases rapidly on increasing the length of alkyl chain.
3. Physical state:
Methanal is a gas at room temperature, ethanal and acetone are volatile liquids and other aldehydes and ketones are
liquid or solid at room temperature.
Structure of the Carbonyl group
The carbonyl carbon atom is sp2-hybridised and forms three sigma (σ) bonds. The fourth valence electron of
carbon forms a π-bond with oxygen. In addition, the oxygen atom also has two non bonding electron pairs. Thus, the
carbonyl carbon and the three atoms attached to it lie in the same plane and the π-electron cloud is above and below this
plane. The bond angles are approximately 1200.
The carbon-oxygen double bond is polarised due to higher electronegativity of oxygen. Hence, the carbonyl carbon is
an electrophilic (Lewis acid), and carbonyl oxygen, a nucleophilic (Lewis base) centre. The high polarity of the carbonyl
group is explained on the basis of resonance as follows:

Chemical Reactions of Aldehydes and Ketones

Since aldehydes and ketones contain a carbonyl group, they undergo similar chemical reactions. The important reactions
of aldehydes and ketones are:
1. Nucleophilic addition reactions:
A nucleophile attacks the electrophilic carbon atom of the polar carbonyl group from a direction approximately
perpendicular to the plane of sp2 hybridised orbitals of carbonyl carbon. As a result, the hybridisation of carbon changes
from sp2 to sp3 and a tetrahedral alkoxide intermediate is produced. This intermediate captures a proton from the
reaction medium to give the product.

Step I

slow

Tetrahedral Intermediate Addition Product

Aldehydes are generally more reactive than ketones in nucleophilic addition reactions due to steric and electronic
reasons. Sterically, the presence of two bulky alkyl groups in ketones hinders the approach of nucleophile to carbonyl
carbon than in aldehydes. Electronically, ketones are less reactive because of the electron releasing nature of the two
alkyl groups reduces the electrophilicity of the carbonyl carbon.
Some important nucleophilic addition reactions of aldehydes and ketones are:
a) Addition of hydrogen cyanide (HCN): Aldehydes and ketones react with hydrogen cyanide (HCN) in presence of a
base to give cyanohydrins.

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 Intermediate Cyanohydrin
Aldehydes give aldehyde cyanohydrins and ketones give ketone cyanohydrins. The cyanohydrins are useful synthetic
intermediates since it can be converted to carboxylic acids, amines, amides etc.
b) Addition of sodium hydrogensulphite: Aldehydes and ketones add sodium hydrogensulphite to form the
addition products (bisulphite adduct).

The bisulphate adduct are water soluble and can be converted back to the original aldehyde or ketone by treating
it with dilute mineral acid or alkali. Therefore, this reaction is used for the separation and purification of aldehydes and
ketones.
c) Addition of Grignard reagents: Carbonyl compounds add Grignard reagent followed by hydrolysis, alcohols are
formed. Formaldehyde gives primary alcohols, other aldehydes give secondary alcohols and ketones give tertiary
alcohols.

d) Addition of alcohols: Aldehydes react with monohydric alcohol in the presence of dry HCl to give alkoxyalcohol
intermediate (known as hemiacetals), which further react with one molecule of alcohol to give a gem-dialkoxy
compound known as acetal.

Ketones react with ethylene glycol in presence of dry HCl to form cyclic products known as ethylene glycol ketals.
Acetals and ketals are hydrolysed with aqueous mineral acids to give corresponding aldehydes and ketones
respectively.

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 e) Addition of ammonia and its derivatives: Nucleophiles like ammonia and its derivatives H2N-Z are added to the
carbonyl group of aldehydes and ketones. The reaction is reversible and catalysed by acid.

i) Addition of ammonia: Aldehydes and ketones add ammonia followed by elimination of a water molecule to
give imines.
R-CHO + NH3 → R-CH(OH)NH2 → R-CH=NH + H2O
(imines)
R2CO + NH3 → R2C(OH)NH2 → R2C=NH + H2O
ii) Addition of Amine: Carbonyl compounds add amines to give substituted imines (Schiff’s bases).
R-CHO + R’-NH2 → R-CH(OH)NHR’ → R-CH=NR’ + H2O
R2CO + R’-NH2 → R2C(OH)NHR’ → R2C=NR’ + H2O
iii) Addition of hydroxyl amine (NH2-OH): Carbonyl compounds condensed with hydroxyl amine to give oximes.
R-CHO + NH2OH → R-CH=N-OH + H2O
(aldoxime)
R2CO + NH2OH → R2C=N-OH + H2O
iv) Addition of hydrazine (NH2-NH2): Carbonyl compounds condensed with hydrazine to give hydrazone.
R-CHO + NH2-NH2 → R-CH=N-NH2 + H2O
(hydrazone)
R2CO + NH2-NH2 → R2C=N-NH2 + H2O
v) Addition of phenyl hydrazine (NH2-NH-C6H5): Carbonyl compounds condensed with phenyl hydrazine to give
phenyl hydrazone.
R-CHO + NH2-NH-C6H5 → R-CH=N-NH-C6H5 + H2O
(phenyl hydrazone)
R2CO + NH2-NH-C6H5 → R2C=N-NH-C6H5 + H2O
vi) Addition of 2,4-dinitrophenyl hydrazine (2,4-DNP): Carbonyl compounds condensed with 2,4-dinitrophenyl
hydrazine to give 2,4-dinitrophenyl hydrazone.

R-CHO + NH2-NH- R-CH=N-NH

+ H2O
2,4-dinitrophenyl hydrazine 2,4-dinitrophenyl hydrazone
2,4-dinitrophenyl hydrazine is also known as Borsches reagent. 2,4-DNP-derivatives are yellow, orange or red
solids and hence this reaction is used for the characterisation of aldehydes and ketones.
vii) Addition of Semicarbazide (NH2-NH-CO-NH2): Carbonyl compounds condensed with semicarbazide to yield
samicarbazone.
R-CHO + NH2-NH-CO-NH2 → R-CH=N-NH-CO-NH2 + H2O
(semicarbazone)
R2CO + NH2-NH-CO-NH2 → R2C=N-NH-CO-NH2 + H2O
2. Reduction:
i) Reduction to alcohols: When reduced using sodium borohydride (NaBH4) or lithium aluminium hydride
(LiAlH4) or H2 in presence of Ni, Pd or Pt catalyst (Catalytic hydrogenation), aldehydes give primary alcohols,
while ketones give secondary alcohols.
R-CHO [H] R-CH2OH
R2CO [H] R2CHOH

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 ii) Reduction to Hydrocarbons:
Clemmensen reduction: Aldehydes and ketones can be reduced to alkanes on treatment with zinc amalgam and
concentrated hydrochloric acid. During this reaction, the carbonyl group is reduced to CH2 (methylene) group.

CH3-CHO + [H] Zn/Hg CH3-CH3

CH3-CO-CH3 + [H] Zn/Hg CH3-CH2-CH3
Wolff-Kishner reduction: Carbonyl group can also be reduced to methylene group, by treating with hydrazine
followed by heating with sodium or potassium hydroxide in high boiling solvent such as ethylene glycol.

CH3-CHO 1) NH2-NH2 2) KOH/Ethylene glycol/∆ CH3-CH3

CH3-CO-CH3 1) NH2-NH2 2) KOH/Ethylene glycol/∆ CH3-CH2-CH3
3. Oxidation:
Aldehydes are easily oxidised to carboxylic acids on treatment with common oxidising agents like nitric acid,
potassium permanganate, potassium dichromate etc. Mild oxidising agents like CrO3, Tollens’ reagent and Fehlings’
reagent can also oxidise aldehydes.
R-CHO [O] R-COOH
CH3-CHO [O] CH3-COOH
Ketones when oxidised using strong oxidising agents and at high temperatures, we get a mixture of carboxylic
acids having lesser number of carbon atoms. During this reaction carbon-carbon bond cleavage occurs.

E.g. CH3-CH2-CO-CH2-CH2-CH3 [O] 2 CH3-CH2-COOH + CH3-COOH + CH3-CH2-CH2-COOH

4. Haloform Reaction:
Aldehydes or ketones having CH3-CO- group or CH3-CHOH- group, when treated with sodium hypohalite or
halogen in presence of NaOH, we get a haloform (CHX3). This reaction is called haloform reaction. During this
reaction, the methyl group is converted to haloform. This reaction does not affect a carbon-carbon double bond, if
present in the molecule.
R-CO-CH3 NaOX R-COONa + CHX3 (where X = Cl, Br or I)

The reaction with sodium hypoiodite gives an yellow precipitate of iodoform and this reaction is used for the
detection of CH3-CO- group or CH3-CHOH- group in a compound. For example 2-pentanone and 3-pentanone can be
distinguished by iodoform reaction. 2-pentanone gives this reaction.
5. Aldol condensation Reaction:
Aldehydes and ketones having at least one α-hydrogen atom when treated with dilute alkali, we get β-hydroxy
aldehydes (aldol) or β-hydroxy ketones (ketol) respectively. This is known as Aldol reaction. The product formed
contains both aldehydic (ketonic) and alcoholic group. So the name aldol or ketol is used.
The aldol or ketol on heated undergo dehydration to give α,β-unsaturated aldehyde or ketone. This reaction is
called Aldol condensation.
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 2CH3-CHO dil. NaOH CH3-CH(OH)-CH2-CHO CH3-CH=CH-CHO
Ethanal 3-Hydroxybutanal (aldol) But-2-enal (Crotanaldehyde)

6. Cross aldol condensation: When aldol condensation is carried out between two different aldehydes or ketones, it
is called cross aldol condensation. If both of them contain α-hydrogen atoms, we get a mixture of four products.
CH3-CHO + CH2-CH2-CHO NaOH/∆ CH3-CH=CH-CHO + CH3-CH2-CH=C(CH3)-CHO + CH3-CH=C(CH3)-CHO
Ethanal Propanal But-2-enal 2-methylpent-2-enal 2-methylbut-2-enal
+ CH3-CH2-CH=CH-CHO
Pent-2-enal

7. Cannizzaro Reaction:
Aldehydes having no α-hydrogen atom (e.g. HCHO, C6H5-CHO, CCl3-CHO etc), when treated with Conc. alkali
(NaOH or KOH) undergo self oxidation and reduction (disproportionation) to form one molecule of the alcohol and one
molecule of carboxylic acid salt. This reaction is called Cannizzaro reaction.
2 HCHO Conc. KOH CH3-OH + H-COOK
Formaldehyde methanol potassium formate
2 C6H5-CHO Conc. KOH C6H5-CH2OH + C6H5-COOK
Benzaldehyde benzyl alcohol potassium benzoate
8. Electrophilic Substitution Reactions:
Aldehydic and ketonic groups are meta directing and deactivating. So on electrophilic substitution reactions, they
give meta-derivatives.
e.g. Nitration:

Tests to distinguish Aldehydes and Ketones

1. Tollens’ test:
Tollen’s reagent is freshly prepared ammoniacal Silver nitrate. On warming Tollens’ reagent, aldehydes
give a bright silver mirror. During this reaction, the aldehyde is oxidised to corresponding carboxylate ion and
silver nitrate is reduced to silver metal.

R-CHO + 2[Ag(NH3)2]+ + 3OH– R-COO– + 2 Ag + 2 H2O + 4 NH3

2. Fehling’s test:

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 Fehling reagent is a mixture of two solutions, Fehling solution A and Fehling solution B. Fehling solution A
is aqueous copper sulphate and Fehling solution B is alkaline sodium potassium tartarate (Rochelle salt). On
heating with Fehling’s reagent, aldehyde gives a reddish brown precipitate of cuprous oxide (Cu2O). Aromatic
aldehydes do not give this test.
R-CHO + 2Cu2+ + 5OH – R-COO– + Cu2O + 3H2O
(Cuprous oxide)
3. Benedict’s test:
Benedict’s solution is a mixture of CuSO4, sodium citrate and sodium carbonate. Aliphatic aldehydes give
reddish brown precipitate when heated with Benedict’s reagent.
R-CHO + 2Cu2+ + 5OH – R-COO– + Cu2O + 3H2O
The above tests are not answered by ketones.
CARBOXYLIC ACIDS
Carbon compounds containing a carboxyl functional group (–COOH) are called carboxylic acids. The carboxyl
group consists of a carbonyl group attached to a hydroxyl group, hence its name carboxyl. Aliphatic carboxylic acids
containing 12 to 18 C atoms are called fatty acids. They occur in natural fats as esters of glycerol.
Nomenclature
The common names of carboxylic acids end with the suffix –ic acid and have been derived from Latin or Greek
names of their natural sources. For example, formic acid (HCOOH) was first obtained from red ants (Latin: formica means
ant), acetic acid (CH3COOH) from vinegar (Latin: acetum, means vinegar), butyric acid (CH3CH2CH2COOH) from rancid
butter (Latin: butyrum means butter).
In the IUPAC system, aliphatic carboxylic acids are named by replacing the ending –e in the name of the
corresponding alkane with – oic acid. In numbering the carbon chain, the carboxylic carbon is numbered one. For naming
compounds containing more than one carboxyl group, the ending –e of the alkane is retained. The number of carboxyl
groups is indicated by adding the prefixes di, tri, etc. to the term oic.
Some examples are:
Compound Common name IUPAC name
HCOOH Formic acid Methanoic acid
CH3COOH Acetic acid Ethanoic acid
CH3CH2COOH Propionic acid Propanoic acid
CH3CH2CH2COOH Butyric acid Butanoic acid
(CH3)2CHCOOH Isobutyric acid 2-Methylpropanoic acid
CH3CH2CH2CH2COOH Valeric acid Pentanoic acid
CH3CH2CH2CH2CH2COOH Caproic acid Hexanoic acid
HOOC-COOH Oxalic acid Ethanedioic acid
HOOC -CH2-COOH Malonic acid Propanedioic acid
HOOC -(CH2)2-COOH Succinic acid Butanedioic acid
HOOC -(CH2)3-COOH Glutaric acid Pentanedioic acid
HOOC -(CH2)4-COOH Adipic acid Hexanedioic acid
HOOC -CH2-CH(COOH)-CH2-COOH Propane-1, 2, 3-
tricarboxylic acid

Benzenecarboxylic acid
Benzoic acid
(Benzoic acid)

Phenylacetic acid 2-Phenylethanoic acid

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 Benzene-1, 2-
Phthalic acid dicarboxylic
acid

Methods of Preparation of Carboxylic acids

1. From primary alcohols and aldehydes:
Primary alcohols are readily oxidised to carboxylic acids with common oxidising agents such as potassium
permanganate (KMnO4) in neutral, acidic or alkaline media or by potassium dichromate (K2Cr2O7) and chromium trioxide
(CrO3) in acidic media.
R-CH2OH alkaline KMnO4/H3O+ R-COOH
CH3-CH2-OH CrO3/H2SO4 CH3-COOH
Aldehydes on oxidation with mild oxidising agents like CrO3 or Tollen’s reagent to give carboxylic acids.
R-CHO [O] R-COOH
CH3-CHO [O] CH3-COOH
2. From alkylbenzenes:
Aromatic carboxylic acids can be prepared by vigorous oxidation of alkyl benzenes with chromic acid or acidic or
alkaline potassium permanganate. The entire side chain is oxidised to the carboxyl group irrespective of length of the side
chain. Primary and secondary alkyl groups are oxidised in this manner while tertiary group is not affected.

Toluene Potassium Benzoate Benzoic acid

1-phenylpropane potassium benzoate Benzoic acid

3. From nitriles and amides:

Hydrolysis of nitriles in presence of acid or alkali as catalyst first give amides, which on further give carboxylic
acids. Mild reaction conditions are used to stop the reaction at the amide stage.

Benzamide Benzoic acid

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 4. From Grignard reagents:
Grignard reagents react with carbon dioxide (dry ice) in dry ether to form salts of carboxylic acids which on
acidification give corresponding carboxylic acids.

Grignard reagents and nitriles can be prepared from alkyl halides. So the above two reactions are used for
converting alkyl halides into corresponding carboxylic acids having one carbon atom more than that present in alkyl
halides.

5. From acyl halides and anhydrides:

Acid chlorides and anhydrides when hydrolysed with water give carboxylic acids. The rate of hydrolysis increases
in alkaline medium.

6. From esters:
Acidic hydrolysis of esters gives directly carboxylic acids while basic hydrolysis gives salt of carboxylic acids which on
acidification give corresponding carboxylic acids.
CH3-CH2-COOCH3 NaOH CH3-CH2-COONa + CH3OH
H+
CH3-CH2-COOH + NaOH

Physical Properties
1. Physical state: Aliphatic carboxylic acids upto nine carbon atoms are colourless liquids at room temperature with
unpleasant odours. The higher acids are wax like solids and are practically odourless due to their low volatility.
2. Boiling point: Carboxylic acids are higher boiling liquids than aldehydes, ketones and alcohols of comparable
molecular masses. This is due to more extensive association of carboxylic acid molecules through intermolecular
hydrogen bonding. Most carboxylic acids exist as dimer in the vapour phase or in the aprotic solvents.

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 3. Solubility: Simple aliphatic carboxylic acids having upto four carbon atoms are miscible in water due to the
formation of hydrogen bonds with water. The solubility decreases with increasing number of carbon atoms. The
simplest aromatic carboxylic acid, benzoic acid, is nearly insoluble in cold water. Carboxylic acids are also soluble
in less polar organic solvents like benzene, ether, alcohol, chloroform, etc.
Chemical Reactions
A) Reactions Involving Cleavage of O–H Bond:
1. Acidity:
Reactions with metals and alkalies: Like alcohols and phenols, carboxylic acids react with electropositive
metals and liberate hydrogen gas.
2 R-COOH + 2 Na 2 R-COONa + H2
R-COOH + NaOH R-COONa + H2O
Unlike alcohols and phenols, carboxylic acids react with sodium carbonates and bicarbonates and give brisk
effervescence of carbon dioxide.
R-COOH + NaHCO3 R-COONa + H2O + CO2
Carboxylic acids dissociate in water to give resonance stabilized carboxylate anions and hydronium ion.
R-COOH + H2O R-COO – + H3O+
Due to the formation of hydronium ion in water, carboxylic acids are acidic in nature.
The acidity of a substance is expressed in terms of pKa value, which is the negative logarithm of Ka
i.e. pKa = - logKa
Greater the value of Ka, smaller will be pKa and stronger will be the acid.
Comparison of acidic character
Carboxylic acids are weaker than mineral acids, but they are stronger acids than other organic compounds like
alcohols and many simple phenols. The higher acidity of carboxylic acids as compared to phenols can be explained as
follows:
The carboxylate ion formed from the ionization of carboxylic acid is stabilised by two equivalent resonance
structures in which the negative charge is at the more electronegative oxygen atom. But the phenoxide ion formed from
the ionization of phenol has non-equivalent resonance structures in which the negative charge is at the less
electronegative carbon atom.

Also the negative charge is delocalised over two electronegative oxygen atoms in carboxylate ion, whereas it is
less effectively delocalised over one oxygen atom and less electronegative carbon atoms in phenoxide ion. Therefore
carboxylate ion is more stable than phenoxide ion and hence carboxylic acids easily donate H+ ion and form carboxylate
ion. So it is more acidic.
Effect of substituents on the acidity of carboxylic acids:
Electron withdrawing groups increase the acidity of carboxylic acids by stabilising the carboxylate ion through
delocalisation of the negative charge by inductive and resonance effects. But electron donating groups decrease the
acidity by destabilising the carboxylate ion.

The effect of the following groups in increasing acidity order is

Ph < I < Br < Cl < F < CN < NO2 < CF3

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 Direct attachment of groups such as phenyl or vinyl to the carboxylic acid, increases the acidity of corresponding
carboxylic acid. This is because of greater electronegativity of sp2 hybridised carbon to which carboxyl carbon is attached.
The presence of electron withdrawing group on the phenyl of aromatic carboxylic acid increases their acidity while
electron donating groups decrease their acidity.
B) Reactions Involving Cleavage of C–OH Bond
1. Formation of anhydride: Carboxylic acids on heating with mineral acids like H2SO4 or with P2O5 undergo
dehydration to give acid anhydrides.

R-COOH + HOOC-R P2O5/∆ (R-CO)2O + H2O

+
CH3-COOH + HOOC-CH3 H /∆ (CH3-CO)2O + H2O
Acetic acid acetic anhydride
2. Esterification: Carboxylic acids when heated with alcohols or phenols in the presence of a mineral acid like
concentrated H2SO4 or HCl gas, we get esters. This reaction is reversible and is known as esterification.

CH3-COOH + CH3-OH H+ CH3-COO-CH3 + H2O

Acetic acid methanol methyl acetate
3. Reactions with PCl3, PCl5 and SOCl2: Carboxylic acids on treating with PCl3, PCl5 or SOCl2, we get acid chlorides.
Reaction with thionyl chloride (SOCl2) is preferred because the byproducts are gases and are easily escaped from
the reaction mixture so that we get pure acid chloride.
R-COOH + PCl3 R-COCl + H3PO3
R-COOH + PCl5 R-COCl + POCl3+ HCl
R-COOH + SOCl2 R-COCl + SO2 + HCl
4. Reaction with ammonia: Carboxylic acids react with ammonia to give ammonium salts which on further heating
at high temperature give amides.
R-COOH + NH3 R-COO-NH4+ ∆ R-CONH2 + H2O

Benzoic acid Ammonium benzoate Benzamide

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 Phthalic acid

Strong heating
+ NH3

Phthalimide
C) Reactions Involving –COOH Group
1. Reduction: Carboxylic acids when reduced with lithium aluminium hydride or with diborane, primary alcohols are
formed. Diborane does not reduce functional groups like ester, nitro, halo, etc. Sodium borohydride does not
reduce the carboxyl group.
R-COOH i) LiAlH4/ether or B2H6 ii) H3O+ R-CH2OH

CH3-COOH i) LiAlH4/ether or B2H6 ii) H3O+ CH3-CH2OH

2. Decarboxylation:
i) When sodium salts of carboxylic acid are heated with sodalime (a mixture of NaOH and CaO), they undergo
decarboxylation (elimination of CO2) to form alkanes.
R-COONa + NaOH CaO/∆ R-H + Na2CO3
CH3-COONa + NaOH CaO/∆ CH4 + Na2CO3
ii) Kolbe’s electrolysis: When an aqueous solution of sodium or potassium salt of carboxylic acid is electrolysed, we
get alkanes having twice the number of carbon atoms that present in the alkyl group of the acid. This reaction is
known as Kolbe electrolysis.
2 R-COOK + 2H2O electrolysis R-R + 2KOH + H2 + 2CO2
2 CH3-COOH + 2 H2O electrolysis CH3-CH3 + 2KOH + H2 + 2CO2
D) Substitution Reactions in the Hydrocarbon Part:
1. Halogenation [HVZ Reaction]
Carboxylic acids having an α-hydrogen atom, when treated with halogen (chlorine or bromine) in the presence of
red phosphorus, we get α-halocarboxylic acids. This reaction is known as Hell-Volhard-Zelinsky(HVZ) reaction.

α-halocarboxylic acid
CH3-CH2-COOH i) Cl2/ Red P ii) H2O CH3-CHCl-COOH + HCl
` Propanoic acid 2-chloropropanoic acid
This reaction is synthetically important since the halogen atom can be replaced by other groups.
2. Electrophilic substitution reactions:
The –COOH group is a deactivating group and meta-directing. So on electrophilic substitution reactions, we get meta
derivatives.
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e.g. 1. Nitration

2. Bromination

But carboxylic acids do not undergo Friedel-Crafts reactions because the carboxyl group is deactivating and the
catalyst aluminium chloride (Lewis acid) gets bonded to the carboxyl group to form salts.

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