Alcohol oxidation is an important organic reaction.

Primary alcohols (R-CH2-OH) can be oxidized either

to aldehydes (R-CHO) or to carboxylic acids (R-CO2H), while the oxidation of secondary alcohols
(R1R2CH-OH) normally terminates at the ketone (R1R2C=O) stage. Tertiary alcohols (R1R2R3C-OH) are
resistant to oxidation.[1]
The direct oxidation of primary alcohols to carboxylic acids normally proceeds via the corresponding
aldehyde, which is transformed via an aldehyde hydrate (R-CH(OH)2) by reaction with water before it
can be further oxidized to the carboxylic acid.
Often it is possible to interrupt the oxidation of a primary alcohol at the aldehyde level by performing the
reaction in absence of water, so that no aldehyde hydrate can be formed.

Primary alcohols
Primary alcohols can be oxidised to either aldehydes or carboxylic
acids depending on the reaction conditions. In the case of the
formation of carboxylic acids, the alcohol is first oxidised to an
aldehyde which is then oxidised further to the acid.
Partial oxidation to aldehydes

1.
also
ethyl
pure
grain
or
alcohol,
volatile,

You get an aldehyde if you use an excess of the alcohol, and distil
off the aldehyde as soon as it forms.
The excess of the alcohol means that there isn't enough oxidising
agent present to carry out the second stage. Removing the
aldehyde as soon as it is formed means that it doesn't hang around
waiting to be oxidised anyway!
If you used ethanol as a typical primary alcohol, you would produce
the aldehyde ethanal, CH3CHO.
The full equation for this reaction is fairly complicated, and you
need to understand about electron-half-equations in order to work it
out.

In organic chemistry, simplified versions are often used which

concentrate on what is happening to the organic substances. To do
that, oxygen from an oxidising agent is represented as [O]. That
would produce the much simpler equation:

It also helps in remembering what happens. You can draw simple

structures to show the relationship between the primary alcohol and
the aldehyde formed.

Important! This is not intended to suggest any sort of mechanism for

the reaction - it is just a way of helping you to remember what happens.

Ethanol,
called
alcohol,
alcohol,
alcohol,
drinking
is a

flammable, colorless liquid with the structural formula CH3CH2OH, often abbreviated as C2H5OH or
C2H6O. Wikipedia
2.

Formula: C2H6O
Density: 789.00 kg/m
Boiling point: 78.37 C
Melting point: -114 C
IUPAC ID: ethanol
Molar mass: 46.06844 g/mol

All alcohols can be completely oxidized to carbon dioxide and water by oxygen in the air; that is, all
alcohols are combustible. Like hydrocarbons, combustion is an important reaction of alcohols, but more
controlled oxidation is even more important, because it can convert alcohols into other compounds that
are useful to society. The ease with which an alcohol can be oxidized and the extent of the oxidation
depends on whether the alcohol is primary, secondary, or tertiary.
For primary alcohols, controlled, stepwise oxidation first yields compounds called aldehydes; if more of
the oxidizing agent is available, then aldehydes can be further oxidized to carboxylic acids. Schematically
Primary alcohol aldehyde carboxylic acid
Oxidation of an organic compound can usually be recognized because either an oxygen atom is added to
a molecule or two hydrogen atoms are lost from a molecule. For example, stepwise oxidation of ethanol
first produces the aldehyde ethanal (commonly called acetaldehyde); further oxidation produces the
carboxylic acid, ethanoic acid (commonly called acetic acid). An aldehyde has the functional group CHO,
where the carbon atom is double-bonded to an oxygen atom. A carboxylic acid has the functional group
COOH, in which the carbon atom is double-bonded to an oxygen atom and single-bonded to an oxygen
atom in an OH group. The structures below show the differences between ethanol, ethanal, and ethanoic
acid.