Chemistry Hydrocarbons MDCAT 2019
PMDC Verified Question 37 of 65
Which of the following reactions is used for the production of alcohols on industrial scale?
A
Hydrohalogenation of alkenes
B
Hydroxylation of alkenes
C
Hydrogenation of alkenes
D
Hydration of alkenes
Tap any option to test your recall and reveal the step-by-step Propolis autopsy.

Propolis Cognitive Error Autopsy

Official Correct Choice:
Option D: Hydration of alkenes
Concept:

Industrial synthesis requires cheap, abundantly available precursors. Ethene from petroleum cracking and steam (water) fit this requirement perfectly.

Solution:

  • The direct hydration of alkenes (adding \( \text{H}_2\text{O} \) across a double bond) is the standard industrial method to synthesize large quantities of simple alcohols.


  • For example, reacting ethene gas with high-pressure steam in the presence of a phosphoric acid catalyst yields vast amounts of industrial ethanol.


Why other options are incorrect:

  • Hydrohalogenation adds HX, yielding alkyl halides, not alcohols.


  • Hydrogenation adds \( \text{H}_2 \), yielding alkanes.


  • Hydroxylation uses expensive reagents (like \( \text{KMnO}_4 \) or \( \text{OsO}_4 \)) to form diols, which is not feasible for bulk mono-alcohol synthesis.

Quality & Fidelity Assurance: Every question on BeambePrep is rigorously curated against the official PMDC syllabus with zero filler, zero out-of-syllabus content, and zero typos. When an authentic past paper originally contained a historical mistake or ambiguity from the examining board (such as UHS or NUMS), BeambePrep faithfully reflects the original paper while detailing the nuance and scientific consensus in the autopsy above.

Previous Question All Hydrocarbons MCQs Next Question

Want to solve full-length papers under timed exam conditions?

Practice with zero-scroll lockdown sprints, dynamic latency zone timers, live peer selection telemetry, and the automated Amber mistake recovery loop.

Enter Arena Sprint iOS App Android App