Hydration of Alkenes (Addition of water)

Submitted by Germán Fernández on Sun, 07/08/2012 - 21:19

Alkenes react with water and a strong acid catalyst (H2SO4) to yield alcohols.  Markovnikov`s rule is followed.

Mechanism:
Step 1. Protonation of the double bound to give the more stable carbocation.
 
 
Step 2. Water acts as a nucleophile to atack the carbocation.
 
 
Step 3. Water acts as a base and remove the proton.
 
 
This reaction is carried out in diluite acid medium, water/sulfuric acid 50:50 is often used.
 
Addition of water to 1-Methylcyclopent-1-ene
 
 
Mechanism:
 
  • 8017 reads