Question

Ethyl alcohol + Diazomethane → Ethyl methyl ether . What is the catalyst in this reaction?​

Answer 1

The catalyst in the given reaction

Explanation:

In the reaction of ethyl alcohol with diazomethane, the catalyst is Tetrafluoro Boric acid.

• Ethers, represented as R-O-R, are the anhydrides of alcohols.
• Ethers are said to be the dialkyl derivatives of water or  mono alkyl derivatives of alcohols.
• They can be either simple(symmetrical) or mixed (unsymmetrical).
• Ethers can be prepared by reaction by alcohol with diazomethane in the presence of catalyst tetrafluoro boric acid.
• This reaction always form Methyl ethers. This means that among the two alkyl group, one substitution is always methyl.
• Nitrogen gas is evolved as a by-product of this reaction.