When a Primary Alcohol Is Oxidized to a Carboxylic Acid

question 12

Multiple Choice

When a primary alcohol is oxidized to a carboxylic acid, an intermediate product is an aldehyde. Which physical property of the aldehyde can be exploited if it is desired to obtain the aldehyde as the reaction product?

• A) boiling point
• B) molecular weight
• C) solubility
• D) any of these

---

Definitions:

Electronegativity

A measure of an atom’s attraction for electrons.

Covalent Bonding

A chemical bond that involves the sharing of electron pairs between atoms, stabilizing them and making the atoms bound together in a molecule.

Protobionts

Assemblages of organic polymers that spontaneously form under certain conditions. Protobionts may have been involved in chemical evolution.

Abiotically Produced

Referring to substances or processes occurring without the involvement of biological organisms, typically through physical or chemical phenomena.