OC DAT BOOSTER Missed Test Questions Flashcards
(168 cards)
Why is CH3COCH2F more acidic than CH3COCH3?
electron withdrawing group
To determine which conjugate base is more stable, use the mnemonic CARDIO (Charge, Atom, Resonance Delocalization, Induction, Orbital). The acidic proton on both molecules is bound to a carbon atom located next to a carbonyl group. So, the charge, atom, and resonance delocalization will be the same for both molecules. The first point of difference in ‘CARDIO’ is inductive effects.
The conjugate base of CH3COCH2F is further stabilized by induction. The fluorine atom is an electron withdrawing group, so it will help disperse the negative charge of the conjugate base. Keep in mind fluorine is very electronegative, which makes it possible for it to pull electron density towards itself. CH3COCH3 does not have an electron withdrawing group, so it’s conjugate base will not be stabilized by inductive effects.
What signal will the protons of the methyl group of the following compound produce on a 1H NMR spectrum?
singlet
The number of 1H NMR signals is equal to the number of non-equivalent protons. Protons are equivalent when they exist in the same chemical environment. To determine the multiplicity of a given signal (splitting), we look for the number of non-equivalent neighboring protons plus 1. This is known as the n+1 rule.
The figure below shows the hydrogen atoms present on the given molecule.
The methyl group (blue) consists of three chemically equivalent hydrogen atoms. The neighboring carbon (red) is bound to two bromine atoms and another carbon atom. Note, the neighboring carbon (red) is NOT bound to any hydrogen atoms, so n=0 in the n+1 rule. As a result, the methyl group (blue) will produce a singlet because n+1 = 0+1 = 1.
Which of the following is true regarding the initiation step of free radical reactions?
In a free radical reaction, the formation of free radicals occurs in the initiation step. Since this is energetically unfavorable, the initiation step has the highest activation energy and is therefore the rate-determining step. The termination step is favorable (lower in energy) because the radicals combine to form a stable molecule.
Which compound will produce a large peak at approximately 1710 cm-1 on an IR spectrum?
ethanal
The question states that a large peak is observed at 1710 cm-1, which indicates that the compound contains a carbonyl group. Ethanal, being an aldehyde, is the only compound listed that contains a carbonyl group as shown below.
Which radical is most stable?
To determine which radical is the most stable, consider (1) substitution and (2) resonance delocalization. More substituted radicals are more stable because alkyl groups donate electron density to the carbon bearing the unpaired electron. Free radicals that are delocalized by resonance are even more stable due to the effects of resonance stabilization. Note: Vinyl radicals and phenyl radicals (radicals on alkene carbons) are extremely unstable.
Benzylic and allylic radicals are more stable than tertiary radicals due to the resonance stabilization. Tertiary radicals are more stable than secondary radicals, and secondary radicals are more stable than primary radicals (due to increasing substitution). Vinyl and phenyl radicals are less stable than primary radicals
Consider talose, an aldohexose sugar. What type of functional group will be formed when talose cyclizes?
hemiacetal
The cyclization of monosaccharides involves the primary alcohol at one end of the molecule adding to the aldehyde at the other end of the molecule. This will form a hemiacetal (shown below) because the product will have one -OH group and one -OR group. Note that the outcome of this reaction will be the same under acidic and basic conditions because the reaction involves an aldehyde and one alcohol.
Which of the following compounds is most acidic?
CHF2CH2SH
Acid strength is determined by conjugate base stability. To solve this problem, use the mnemonic CARDIO (charge, atom, resonance delocalization, induction, orbital). In all the molecules, the acidic proton is attached to oxygen or sulfur. A bigger atom will increase acidity because it can better accommodate the negative charge of the conjugate base. If we apply this concept to the question, we can narrow our options down to C and E because sulfur has a larger atomic radius than oxygen. Electron-withdrawing groups increase acidity because they stabilize the conjugate base via induction. More fluorine atoms means more induction and increased acidity. Option E has the most fluorine atoms (shown below), so it is the most acidic.
During an acid/base extraction, aqueous sodium hydroxide is added to a mixture of benzene and compound X in hexanes. Compound X is then isolated from the aqueous layer. Which of the following is most likely compound X?
In this scenario, both benzene and compound X are initially dissolved in the organic layer (hexanes). The addition of sodium hydroxide causes compound X to migrate to the aqueous layer.
Sodium hydroxide is a strong base, so it will deprotonate an acidic compound. To solve this problem, find the compound that can be deprotonated by NaOH. Option A, benzoic acid, is the only option that will be deprotonated by sodium hydroxide because it has an acidic hydrogen bonded to oxygen. The resulting negatively charged conjugate base (a benzoate ion) will move to the aqueous layer, while benzene (a nonpolar compound) will remain in the organic layer
therefore option a is the correct answer
Which of the following correctly describes the stereochemical configuration of the product from this reaction?
Which reagent will accomplish the following transformation?
Br2/FeBr3
In the structure below, which of the indicated groups is antiperiplanar to the OH group?
A
Which of the following molecules is most nucleophilic?
Nucleophilicity parallels basicity. Therefore, the most nucleophilic molecule will be the strongest or most reactive base. Negatively charged bases are more reactive than neutral ones, so we can eliminate Options B and D. If the negative charge of the base is stabilized by resonance, the base will be more stable and thus less reactive. Options C and E are capable of resonance, so they can also be eliminated. Option A is the strongest base and consequently the strongest nucleophile as shown below.
Which of the following functional groups is present in the product of the reaction?
amine
amide
What type of reaction is the following?
electrophilic aromatic substitution
The reaction shown is sulfonation of benzene. Recall that sulfonation is an electrophilic aromatic substitution (EAS) reaction. The general mechanism for an electrophilic aromatic substitution reaction is shown below. Remember that EAS reactions have a positively charged intermediate called a sigma complex.
What type of reaction is the following?
substitution
A substitution reaction is a reaction that replaces one atom/group with another atom/group. The reaction shown here is a radical substitution reaction. Free radical bromination replaces a hydrogen atom with a bromine atom via a radical intermediate.
Given the same molecular mass, which of the following has the highest boiling point?
Recall that hydrogen bonds are one of the strongest intermolecular forces. Molecules engage in hydrogen bonding when an H atom is directly bonded to an N, O, or F atom. Carboxylic acids have higher boiling points than alcohols because two carboxylic acid molecules can be involved in not one, but two hydrogen bonds (shown below). Aldehydes and ketones only contain a carbonyl group, so they engage in dipole-dipole interactions. Thus, aldehydes and ketones have weaker intermolecular forces than carboxylic acids. Benzene is nonpolar and thus only interacts via LDF and pi stacking.
What is the product of the reaction?
Which of the following compounds has the lowest boiling point?
A molecule’s boiling point is determined by the strength of its intermolecular forces. All the molecules are hydrocarbons, so they only engage in London dispersion forces (LDFs). Recall that as molecular weight decreases, a hydrocarbon will have weaker dispersion forces and consequently a lower boiling point. Looking at the option choices, we see that all the hydrocarbons contain six carbons except Option D, which contains five carbons. Because Option D has a lower molecular weight than the other molecules, it will have the lowest boiling point.
What is the relationship between the following pair of compounds?
Which of the following solvents would acetic acid be most soluble in?
Acetic acid is a carboxylic acid (CH3COOH). As a general rule, organic compounds dissolve best in a solvent with similar properties to the compound itself. We can remember this rule as “like dissolves like”. For example, nonpolar molecules such as n-hexane will dissolve best in nonpolar solvents such as benzene. On the other hand, polar molecules capable of hydrogen bonding, such as carboxylic acids, will dissolve best in polar solvents capable of hydrogen bonding.
The only solvent listed that is both polar and capable of hydrogen bonding is aniline
Which is the most stable conformation of cis-1-bromo-4-methylcyclohexane?
“Cis” implies that the two groups are on the same face of the ring, and 1,4 implies that the groups are on carbons 1 and 4. The two chair conformations for the given compound are shown in the figure below.
When substituents are in the axial position they experience diaxial interactions, a type of steric strain that reduces the molecule’s stability. The most stable chair conformation will have the least severe diaxial interactions. Ideally, both groups would be equatorial as this greatly reduces steric interactions.
However, based on the placement of the substituents, this is not possible. Of the two groups, the methyl group is the bulkier substituent because it has more atoms. As a result, the methyl group will experience more severe diaxial interactions in the axial position than the bromine atom. The most stable conformation will have the methyl group equatorial and the bromine atom axial.
Which reagent is needed for the following transformation?
When we compare the starting molecule to the product, we see that the ketone and the carboxylic acid have been reduced. LiAlH4 is a strong reducing agent, so it will reduce the carboxylic acid and the ketone to primary and secondary alcohols, respectively, as shown below.