COMPARE AND CONTRAST (What is THE SAME and

what is DIFFERENT)
Here is a list of things you may be asked to compare and contrast (there could be others!):
Substances/processes
Distillation and reflux
1, 2 and 3 alcohols
Aldehydes and ketones
Amines and amides
Amines and carboxylic acids
Acyl chlorides and anything
Addition and condensation
polymers
Addition and elimination
Oxidation of 1 and 2 alcohols
and reduction of their products
Long chain and short chain
molecules (same family)
Bulky and flat molecules
(different surface area, same
molar mass)
Optical isomers (left and right)
Acid and base hydrolysis (of
(poly)esters or (poly)amides)

Brief description (reagents, key observations etc)

Got
it?

1. Compare the reaction of sodium borohydride (NaBH4) with butanal and with butanone in terms of the
type of reaction that occurs and the expected organic reaction products.

2. Compare and contrast the reactions of ammonia with CH 3CH2COOH (propanoic acid) and with
CH3CH2COCl (propanoyl chloride).
Your answer should include:
the type of reaction occurring

expected organic reaction products.

3. In the laboratory, you are provided with six unlabelled bottles, each containing one of the following
types of organic compound. The compounds are:

A
B
C
D
E
F

an alkene
a primary alcohol
a primary amine
an aldehyde
a carboxylic acid
a tertiary alcohol

You are asked to identify the contents of each bottle using the following tests, in which a small sample of each
compound is added to;
(i)
water, and tested with red and blue litmus.
(ii) an aqueous solution of bromine.
(iii) a solution of acidified potassium dichromate and warmed.
(iv) a solution of ammoniacal silver nitrate (Tollens reagent) and warmed.
(a)

Complete the table below for;

Column 2: writing the letter of the compound(s) which could be identified by each of the tests,
Column 3: giving the observations expected for a positive identification of the specific compound(s),
Column 4: the type of chemical reaction associated with the particular test.
Test
Compound(s)
Expected observations
identified
(i)

Reaction type

(ii)

(iii)

(iv)

(b)

(i) Identify the compound which is not positively identified by any of these tests.

4. From the list below select the test reagent that would enable you to distinguish between the following
pairs of compounds. State what you would observe when the test reagents are added to both
compounds. (A test reagent may be used more than once or not at all).

4
MnO4-/H+

Ag+/NH3 (Tollens reagent)

Cr2O72-/H+

H2O

Fehlings solution

Benedicts solution
Na2CO3

methylpropan2olandbutan2ol

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2

propanoneandpropanal

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3

chloroethaneandethanoylchloride

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