Consider the acid-catalyzed dehydration of alcohols to form alkenes. Which of the following statemen — Alcohols Phenols and Ethers Chemistry Question

💡 Solution & Explanation

The ease of dehydration ($3^\circ > 2^\circ > 1^\circ$) corresponds to carbocation stability. Secondary and tertiary alcohols undergo E1 elimination via a carbocation. Primary alcohols typically undergo E2 elimination to avoid highly unstable primary carbocations. Statement D is incorrect; the protonation step is fast, while the loss of water to form the carbocation is the slow, rate-determining step.