Which of the following distinct chemical transformations are correctly categorized as elimination re — Reaction Mechanism Chemistry Question
Question
Which of the following distinct chemical transformations are correctly categorized as elimination reactions?
💡 Solution & Explanation
Acid-catalyzed dehydration involves the removal of a water molecule to generate an alkene via $E1$ (A is true). Alcoholic $KOH$ forces the removal of $HX$ across adjacent carbons to form an alkene via $E2$ (B is true). Aqueous $KOH$ largely promotes nucleophilic substitution ($S_N2$) yielding alcohols (C is false). Chloroform reacting with strong base involves the loss of both $H^+$ and $Cl^-$ from the very same carbon atom ($\alpha$ -elimination or 1,1-elimination) to create a carbene (D is true).