Question

What is the balanced equation for the oxidation of acetophenone to produce benzoic acid?

Answer 1

acetophenone(C6H5COCH3) reacts with I^- (obtained from NaOI) and OH^-(obtained from NaOH) to form benzoic acid. We can also use Cl^-(obtained from NaOI). The balanced chemical reaction is

C6H5COCH3 + 3 I^-(aq) + 4 OH^-(aq) ----- > C6H5COO^-(aq) + CHI3 + 3 H2O

C6H5COO^-(aq) + H3O+ ---- > C6H5COOH + H2O

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C6H5COCH3 + 3 I^-(aq) + 4 OH^-(aq) + H3O+ ----- > C6H5COOH + CHI3 + 4 H2O (answer)