Which reaction mechanism is primarily involved in the addition of HBr to propene?
Practice Questions
1 question
Q1
Which reaction mechanism is primarily involved in the addition of HBr to propene?
Electrophilic addition
Nucleophilic substitution
Radical substitution
Elimination
The addition of HBr to propene occurs via an electrophilic addition mechanism, where the double bond acts as a nucleophile.
Questions & Step-by-step Solutions
1 item
Q
Q: Which reaction mechanism is primarily involved in the addition of HBr to propene?
Solution: The addition of HBr to propene occurs via an electrophilic addition mechanism, where the double bond acts as a nucleophile.
Steps: 6
Step 1: Identify the reactants - In this case, we have propene (a molecule with a double bond) and HBr (hydrobromic acid).
Step 2: Understand the double bond - The double bond in propene is made of two pairs of electrons, making it a nucleophile, which means it can donate electrons.
Step 3: Recognize HBr as an electrophile - HBr can be split into H+ (a proton) and Br- (a bromide ion). The H+ is an electrophile, meaning it can accept electrons.
Step 4: Electrophilic addition begins - The double bond in propene attacks the H+ from HBr, forming a carbocation (a positively charged carbon atom).
Step 5: Bromide ion attacks - The Br- ion then attacks the carbocation, resulting in the addition of Br to the propene molecule.
Step 6: Final product - The final product is an alkyl bromide, where H and Br have added across the double bond.
