In the general mechanism of nucleophilic addition to a carbonyl group, which specific elementary ste — Aldehydes Ketones and Carboxylic Acids Chemistry Question

💡 Solution & Explanation

The attack of the nucleophile onto the electrophilic carbonyl carbon forces it from a flat $sp^2$ state into a sterically crowded tetrahedral $sp^3$ alkoxide intermediate. This transition is slow and forms the RDS.