There are two main ways of converting alkenes to alcohols, and both are hydration reactions of alkenes. One is the acid-catalyzed hydration of alkenes, and the other is the hydroboration-oxidation of alkenes. An important difference between these methods is the … Read more
Markovnikov’s Rule In the previous post, we talked about the addition reaction of hydrogen halides (HCl, HBr, and HI) to alkenes, and learned about Markovnikov’s rule, which states that in these reactions, the halogen adds to the more substituted carbon … Read more
Double bonds are electron-rich and therefore they react with many electron-deficient species, including acids such as HCl, HBr, and HI. The products of these addition reactions of HX acids to alkenes are alkyl halides: Â Â These are hydrohalogenation reactions, … Read more
Alkenes to Aldehydes and Ketones via Ozonolysis Alkenes can be converted to aldehydes or ketones via ozonolysis, which is an oxidative cleavage reaction converting the C=C bond to a C=O bond. Whether an aldehyde or a ketone is obtained depends … Read more
To convert an alkene to an alkyne, we need to first halogenate it to prepare a dihalide, which can then be treated with a strong base such as sodium amide (NaNH2) to achieve a double elimination: Â Â A triple … Read more
In oxidative cleavage reactions, C=C bonds are broken and replaced with C=O bonds. In this article, we will specifically focus on the oxidative cleavage of alkenes. This is most commonly achieved with potassium permanganate (KMnO4) and ozonolysis: Â Â So, … Read more
Many addition reactions to alkenes are stereoselective since one (set) of stereoisomers is formed from a starting material that is not stereoisomeric. For example, the bromination of cyclohexene forms two enantiomers of trans-1,2-dibromocyclohexane. The cis-dibromo isomer is not formed, and … Read more
The Stereochemistry of Alkene Addition Reactions In the previous post, we talked about the Markovnikov’s rule and learned that in the addition reaction of HX to an unsymmetrical alkene, the H adds to the carbon that already has the greater … Read more
The addition reactions of alkenes are the big start of going deep into Organic reaction mechanisms in the upcoming topics such as alkynes, radical reactions, aromatic compounds, and most of the others. This summary sheet summarizes all the important reactions … Read more
In the previous post, we talked about the acid-catalyzed hydration of alkenes where an alcohol is formed as the major organic product: Â Â If an alcohol, rather than water, is used as the solvent a very similar reaction takes … Read more
