Experiment 8

1. The -carbon can be classified as either primary, secondary, or tertiary

provided that it is an sp3 hybridized carbon. It is considered primary when an
alkyl group is attached to the -carbon, secondary when two alkyl groups are
attached to the -carbon and tertiary if three alkyl groups are attached.
Common amongst all -carbons is nucleophilic substitution - a reaction in
which an incoming nucleophile replaces another group.
2. When you heat the copper wire in a flame, it is oxidized on the surface to
copper (II) oxide:
2Cu(s)+O2(g)2CuO(s)
Then when you mix it with the halide and heat it, the higher reduction
potential makes it displace the oxygen. Copper halides are volatile (except for
fluorides); the gas is hot enough to push some electrons into an excited state,
and as they cool a tiny bit, the electrons drop back into their rest state and
emit the excess energy in the form of a photon with a wavelength
corresponding to the color green.
3. A.
Substitutions are called either SN1 or SN2, depending on the mechanism.
Eliminations are called E1 or E2. The number tells you how many molecules
are involved in the rate-determining step; the 2-type reactions are
bimolecular (a.k.a. concerted) while the 1-type reactions are unimolecular
(a.k.a. stepwise)
B.
The SN2 tends to proceed with strong nucleophiles; by this, generally means
negatively charged nucleophiles such as CH3O(-), CN(-), RS(-), N3(-), HO(-),
and others. The SN1 tends to proceed with weak nucleophiles generally
neutral compounds such as solvents like CH3OH, H2O, CH3CH2OH, and so
on.