Reactions Of Alkanes Flashcards
(17 cards)
What is the general formula for alkanes?
CnH2n+2
True or False: Alkanes are saturated hydrocarbons.
True
Fill in the blank: Alkanes undergo ______ reactions due to the presence of strong C-C and C-H bonds.
limited
What type of reactions are common for alkanes?
Combustion reactions
What is the product when an alkane undergoes combustion?
Carbon dioxide and water
Which type of reaction can convert alkanes to alkyl halides?
Free radical halogenation
What is the reaction mechanism for free radical halogenation?
Initiation, propagation, termination
What type of bond is broken during free radical halogenation of alkanes?
C-H bond
What is the key intermediate in free radical halogenation of alkanes?
Alkyl radical
What is the major product of free radical halogenation of methane with chlorine?
Chloromethane
What is cracking?
This is the breaking down of long chained hydrocarbons into smaller more useful ones.
What are the two types of cracking
Thermal and catalytic
What is homolytic fission
This happens in free radical halogenation when the two shared electrons that are bonded are split equally between the two atoms
What is a radical
A radical is a chemical species with an unpaired electron in it
What occurs in initiation
UV light splits the halogen bonds and two halogen radicals are formed
What occurs in propagation?
-the halogen radical reacts with the methane forming a free methyl radical
- the alkyl radical that is formed reacts with a halogen to regenerate a halogen radical
- the halogen radical reacts with the haloalkane forming another alkyl radical and it continues
What occurs in termination
The process will terminate If
- 2 halogen radicals are combined
- a halogen radical and an alkyl radical combines
- 2 alkyl radical combines
