Question

How would you distinguish experimentally btw an alcohol and carboxylic acid??

Answer 1

(i)Litmus test – Alcohol will have no effect on the litmus paper. Carboxylic acid acid will change blue litmus paper into red.

(ii)Reaction with sodium hydrogen carbonate – Alcohol has no reaction with sodium hydrogen carbonate (NaHCO3) but in the case of Carboxylic acid it reacts with NaHCO3 which gives CH3COONa, CO2 and H2O. The reaction is evident as the carbon dioxide will turn the lime water milky.

Answer 2

On reaction with Sodium Carbonate, Carboxylic acids produces carbon dioxide gas which turns lime water milky whereas alcohols do not give this reaction. This experiment can be used to distinguish an alcohol and carboxylic acid.

Reaction of Carboxylic acid with sodium carbonate:

2CH3COOH + Na2CO3 → 2CH3COONa + H2O + CO2