Oxidation

EXP-3 CHEM 233L

Oxidation and Reduction

Introduction:

In this experiment, we study the difference between reduction and oxidation .We will first convert benzophenone to benzhydrol (diphenylmethanol), a process that involves reduction. In the second part of the experiment, we will reverse the process and oxidize benzylhydrol back to benzophenone, the carbonyl group(Carbon-Oxygen double bond) gains a pair of hydrogens(one hydrogen on carbon and one on oxygen). In part A, the reduction of carbonyl compound (ketone) was practiced to synthesize alcohol product. Ketone was reduced by a weak reducing agent, sodium borohydride (NaBH4). The hydrogen of this metal hydride(hydrogen with a pair of electron) is reactive in (carbon position) carbonyl group reductions. The reaction of reduction benzophenone to benzhydrol as following:

[pic]

In part B, alcohol (benzhydrol) was oxidized to the ketone (benzophenone) in glacial acetic acid solution by potassium dichromate, K2Cr2O7. The reaction was:

[pic]

Table of Physical Properties:

|Compound Name |Molecular Weight |Melting Point |Boiling Point |Density |Solubility |Precautions |

| |(grams) |(0C) |(0C) |(g/ml) | | |

|[pic] |32.042 |-98 |64.6 |0.791 |miscible |flammable |

|Methanol | | | | | | |

|[pic] |37.8313 |36 |400 decompose |0.945 |soluble |Corrosive |

|Sodium Borohydride | | |slowly | | |flammable |...