What is the major product when 2-methylpropene reacts with H2O in the presence of an acid?

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Q: What is the major product when 2-methylpropene reacts with H2O in the presence of an acid?

Solution: The major product is 2-methylpropan-2-ol due to Markovnikov's rule, where water adds to the more substituted carbon.

Steps: 8

Step 1: Identify the reactant, which is 2-methylpropene. This is an alkene with a double bond.
Step 2: Recognize that the reaction involves adding water (H2O) in the presence of an acid.
Step 3: Understand that the acid will help to protonate the double bond, making one carbon more positive (carbocation formation).
Step 4: Apply Markovnikov's rule, which states that when adding H2O to an alkene, the hydrogen (H) will attach to the carbon with more hydrogen atoms already (less substituted), and the hydroxyl group (OH) will attach to the more substituted carbon.
Step 5: Identify the structure of 2-methylpropene: it has a double bond between the first and second carbon atoms, with a methyl group on the second carbon.
Step 6: Determine which carbon is more substituted. The second carbon (with the methyl group) is more substituted than the first carbon.
Step 7: Conclude that the OH group will attach to the second carbon, and the H will attach to the first carbon.
Step 8: Write the final product, which is 2-methylpropan-2-ol, as the major product of the reaction.