Download Determining the Structure of Primary, Secondary, and Tertiary Alcohols

Properties of Primary, Secondary, and Tertiary Alcohols
Question: What does it mean for an alcohol to be primary, secondary, or tertiary?
Procedure:
Part 1
1. Place 2 mL of 0.01 mol/L KMnO4 in a test tube.
2. Add 2 mL of the alcohol labeled as “primary” and 1 mL of water. Place a stopper on the
test tube and shake.
3. Record your observations at one minute intervals for 5 minutes.
4. Repeat steps 1-3 with the secondary and tertiary alcohols.
Part 2
Collect the 3 alcohol samples from your teacher and perform the test above for each.
Discussion:
Based on your results, classify each alcohol as primary, secondary, or tertiary.
Draw structural diagrams for each alcohol. Based on their structure, determine what it means
for an alcohol to be classified as primary, secondary, or tertiary.