Which reaction mechanism is primarily involved in the addition of H2 across an a
Practice Questions
Q1
Which reaction mechanism is primarily involved in the addition of H2 across an alkene?
Electrophilic addition
Nucleophilic substitution
Radical substitution
Elimination
Questions & Step-by-Step Solutions
Which reaction mechanism is primarily involved in the addition of H2 across an alkene?
Step 1: Understand that an alkene is a type of hydrocarbon that has a double bond between two carbon atoms.
Step 2: Recognize that the addition of H2 (hydrogen gas) to an alkene involves breaking the double bond.
Step 3: Identify that this process is called an 'addition reaction' because new atoms (H2) are added to the molecule.
Step 4: Learn that the specific type of addition reaction occurring here is called 'electrophilic addition.'
Step 5: Conclude that in electrophilic addition, the alkene acts as a nucleophile (electron-rich) and reacts with an electrophile (electron-poor), which in this case is the hydrogen.
