Identify the reactions that successfully produce benzene as the major organic product. — Aromatic Hydrocarbons Chemistry Question

💡 Solution & Explanation

Heating phenol with zinc dust strips the oxygen, yielding benzene. Heating sodium benzoate with soda lime ($NaOH/CaO$) removes the carboxylate group as $Na_2CO_3$, yielding benzene. Passing ethyne through a red-hot Fe tube causes cyclic trimerization to benzene. Chlorobenzene does not easily undergo hydrolysis at room temperature; it requires drastic conditions (Dow's process) and yields phenol, not benzene.