Oxidation of Alkanols (oxidation of alcohols) Chemistry Tutorial

Key Concepts

• Alkanols belong to a class of compounds known as alcohols.
• All alcohols have the OH (hydroxyl) functional group which is the active site on the molecule.
• Primary alkanols (primary alcohols) oxidise to alkanals (aldehydes) which in turn are oxidised to alkanoic acids (carboxylic acids).
• Secondary alkanols (secondary alcohols) oxidise to alkanones (ketones).
• Tertiary alkanols (tertiary alcohols) do not oxidise.
• Oxidising agents are reduced:

  ⚛ purple permanganate ion, MnO₄^-, is reduced to colourless Mn²⁺.

  ⚛ orange dichromate ion, Cr₂O₇^2-, is reduced to green chromium(III) ions, Cr³⁺.

  ⚛ NAD⁺ (a biological oxidising agent) is reduced to NADH

• In organic chemistry (carbon chemistry), the "rule of thumb" is that an organic compound has been oxidised if⁽¹⁾:

  (i) it loses hydrogen

  OR

  (ii) it gains oxygen

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Oxidation of a Primary Alkanol (primary alcohol)

Using a suitable oxidising agent⁽²⁾ such as acidified dichromate solution, or, acidified permanganate solution, primary alkanols (primary alcohols) can be oxidised to alkanals (aldehydes), and, alkanals can then be oxidised to the alkanoic acid (carboxylic acid).

The oxidation of the alkanol to the alkanal is signified by the loss of hydrogen from the alkanol in order to produce a double bond to the oxygen.

The oxidation of the alkanal to the alkanoic acid is signified by the incorporation of more oxygen into the molecule.

These reactions are represented in the chemical equations below:

Note that it doesn't matter whether you use acidifed dichromate solution or acidified permangante solution as the oxidising agent, the organic products of the reaction will be the same.

Also note that the observable colour change is not due to the colour of organic reactants and products.
The alkanol, alkanal, and alkanoic acid are all colourless.

The observable colour changes are due to the reduction of the oxidising agent, that is, the oxidising agent gains electrons.

We can represent these changes in the simplified way shown below⁽³⁾:

Example of the Oxidation of a Primary Alkanol (primary alcohol)

Butan-1-ol (1-butanol) is a primary alkanol, the OH functional group is attached to a terminal (end) carbon atom.

Oxidation of a primary alkanol produces firstly an alkanal, and then the alkanal can be further oxidised to produce the alkanoic acid.

The oxidation of butan-1-ol (1-butanol) by acidified dichromate solution to butanal and then butanoic acid is shown below:

In the presence of excess butan-1-ol (1-butanol), the reaction mixture should change colour from orange to green as the orange dichromate ions, Cr₂O₇^2-, are reduced to green chromium(III) ions, Cr³⁺.

Oxidation of a Secondary Alkanol (secondary alcohol)

Using a suitable oxidising agent such as acidified dichromate solution, or, acidified permangante solution, secondary alkanols (alcohols) can be oxidised to alkanones (ketones).

The oxidation of the alkanol to the alkanone is signified by the loss of hydrogen from the alkanol in order to produce a double bond to the oxygen as represented by the chemical equation below:

Note that it doesn't matter whether you use acidifed dichromate solution or acidified permangante solution as the oxidising agent, the organic products of the reaction will be the same.

Also note that the observable colour change is not due to the colour of organic reactants and products.
The alkanol and the alkanone are both colourless.

The observable colour changes are due to the reduction of the oxidising agent, that is, the oxidising agent gains electrons, as represented below:

Example of the Oxidation of a Secondary Alkanol (secondary alcohol)

Butan-2-ol (2-butanol) is a secondary alkanol, the OH functional group is attached to a carbon atom which is itself bonded to two other carbon atoms:

The oxidation of a secondary alkanol (alcohol) produces an alkanone (ketone).

Oxidation of butan-2-ol (2-butanol) by acidified dichromate solution produces butan-2-one (2-butanone or butanone) as represented in the equation below:

In the presence of excess butan-2-ol (2-butanol), the reaction mixture should change colour from orange to green as the orange dichromate ions, Cr₂O₇^2-, are reduced to green chromium(III) ions, Cr³⁺.

Oxidation of a Tertiary Alkanol (tertiary alcohol)

Tertiary alkanols can not be oxidised using oxidising agents such as acidified dichromate solution, nor acidified permanganate solution.

Since no reaction occurs, the oxidising agent is not reduced and the colour of the solution will not change. that is, if you use orange dichromate solution the solution will stay orange, if you use purple permanganate solution the solution will stay purple.

Example of the Attempted Oxidation of a Tertiary Alkanol (tertiary alcohol)

2-methylpropan-2-ol (2-methyl-2-propanol) is a tertiary alkanol, the OH functional group is attached to a carbon atom bonded to 3 other carbon atoms:

2-methylpropan-2-ol (2-methyl-2-propanol) will NOT react with acidified dichromate solution.

The orange dichromate ions will NOT be reduced so there will be no colour change.
The orange reaction mixture will remain orange.

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