Syllabus Edition

First teaching 2023

First exams 2025

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Aldehydes & Ketones (CIE AS Chemistry)

Exam Questions

2 hours27 questions
1a2 marks

State the reactants that can be oxidised to give an aldehyde and a ketone as products.

1b2 marks

State the oxidation products, where appropriate, of an aldehyde and a ketone.

1c3 marks

Describe how you could use 2,4-DNPH and melting point data to determine the identity of an unknown compound.

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2a4 marks

Butanone can react with HCN. 

Complete the reaction mechanism shown in Fig. 2.1 by drawing four curly arrows.

b00ef1e9-5448-4e50-95e1-6774df3b938d
Fig. 2.1 
2b1 mark

Name the organic produced in part (a).

2c1 mark

Explain why butanone has no positional isomers.

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3a2 marks

Table 3.1 shows the initial observations for the reaction for Tollens' reagent with aldehydes and ketones.


Table 3.1

Ketone Aldehyde
Initial observation Final observation Initial observation Final observation
Colourless solution   Colourless solution  

Complete the final observations for aldehydes and ketones.

3b2 marks

Table 3.2 shows the initial observations for the reaction for Fehling's with aldehydes and ketones.


Table 3.2

Ketone Aldehyde
Initial observation Final observation Initial observation Final observation
Blue solution   Blue solution  

Complete the final observations for aldehydes and ketones.

3c2 marks

Ethanal and propanal are reacted separately heated with an alkaline solution of iodine.

i)
State which aldehyde will give a yellow precipitate for this reaction. 

[1]

ii)
Explain your answer to part (c)(i).
[1]

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1a1 mark

Calcium and its compounds have a large variety of applications.

Calcium metal reacts readily with most acids.

When calcium metal is placed in dilute sulfuric acid, it reacts vigorously at first.

After a short time, a layer of calcium sulfate forms on the calcium metal and the reaction stops. Some of the calcium metal and dilute sulfuric acid remain unreacted.

Suggest an explanation for these observations.

1b3 marks

Calcium ethanedioate is formed when calcium reacts with ethanedioic acid, HOOCCOOH.

Calcium ethanedioate contains one cation and one anion.

i)
State the full electronic configuration of the cation in calcium ethanedioate.

[1]

ii)
Deduce the charge on the cation.

 [1]

iii)
Draw the fully displayed formula of ethanedioic acid.
[1]
1c3 marks

Calcium chlorate(I), Ca(ClO)2, is used as an alternative to sodium chlorate(I), NaClO, in some household products.

i)
The chlorate(I) ion is formed when cold aqueous sodium hydroxide reacts with chlorine.

Write an ionic equation for this reaction. State symbols are not required.

[1]

ii)
The chlorate(I) ion is unstable and decomposes when heated as shown.

3ClO → 2Cl + ClO3

This reaction can be described as a disproportionation reaction.

Describe what is meant by disproportionation reaction.
[1]
iii)
Deduce the oxidation number of chlorine in each species for the equation in (c)(ii).

Complete the boxes.q3ciii-9701-y22-sp-2-cie-ial-chem
[1]
1d8 marks

Calcium carbonate reacts with 2-hydroxypropanoic acid to form product Y.

fig-3-1-9701-y22-sp-2-cie-ial-chem

Fig. 1.1

i)
Identify the two other products of the reaction of 2-hydroxypropanoic acid with calcium carbonate.

 [1]

Two possible methods of making 2-hydroxypropanoic acid are shown in Fig. 1.2.

fig-3-2-9701-y22-sp-2-cie-ial-chem

Fig. 1.2

ii)
State suitable reagents and conditions for reactions 1 and 3.

reaction 1 .......................................................................

reaction 3 ........................................................................

[4]

iii)
Deduce the type of reaction that occurs in reaction 2.


[1]

iv)
The reagent for reaction 4 is NaBH4.

Identify the role of NaBH4 in this reaction.

[1]

v)

2-hydroxypropanoic acid has a chiral centre.

State what is meant by chiral centre.

[1]

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2a1 mark

Compound W can be converted into three different organic compounds as shown by the reaction scheme in Fig. 2.1.

q-mutliple-steps
Fig. 2.1

Write an equation for the formation of X. Use [H] to represent the reagent in the equation.

2b5 marks

Identify the specific type of isomerism shown by the product Y, in Fig. 2.1

Draw the mechanism to show the formation Y and explain how this leads to the isomers of Y

2c
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3 marks

When 5.00 cm3 of propanal (Mr = 58.0) were reacted with an excess of acidified potassium dichromate (VI) solution, 4.25 g of propanoic acid (Mr  = 74.0) were obtained.

The density of propanal is 0.810 g cm−3

Calculate the percentage yield for this reaction.

2d3 marks

A different carbonyl compound, Q, (Mr = 72) reacts with 2,4-dinitrophenylhydrazine but not with Tollens’ reagent.

i)
State what you would see when Q reacts with the 2,4-dinitrophenylhydrazine reagent
[1]
ii)
State what functional group is present in Q
[1]
iii)
Identify Q either by name or by its structural formula.
[1]

2e3 marks

Q can be reduced to compound R. For this reaction

i)
State a suitable reducing agent
[1]
ii)
Name the functional group in R (two words are required)
[1]
iii)
Give the structural formula of R
[1]

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3a7 marks

2-hydroxybutanoic acid can be made from propanal by via a reaction with hydrogen cyanide and the subsequent hydrolysis of 2-hyrdoxybutanenitrile. A possible pathway is shown in Fig. 3.1.The incomplete mechanism for reaction 2 is shown in Fig. 3.2. 

3-5-4a-m-fig--4-1-fig--4-2

Fig. 3.1

3-5-4a-m-fig--4-1-fig--4-2--bpng

Fig. 3.2

i)
State the reagents and conditions required for reaction 2

[3]
ii)
Complete the mechanisim for this reaction.


[4]

3b2 marks

2-hydroxybutanenitrile contains a chiral centre. Draw the three-dimensional structures of the two optical isomers.

 






3c1 mark

State the reagent(s) for reaction 3.

3d1 mark

Compound A forms propanal when reacted with acidified potassium dichromate. Give the structural formula of compound A

3e6 marks

Compound A and propanal were tested using a series of reagents outlined in Table 3.1. For each of the tests listed: 

  • State the positive result
  • Identify which compound(s) would give a positive result

Table 3.1 

Reagent Observation for positive result Compounds that will give a positive result
I2 / NaOH (aq)    
Na2CO3    
2,4-DNPH    

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1a2 marks

Aqueous sodium tetrahydridoborate, NaBH4, is a common reducing agent.

Identify two isomers with the formula C3H6O that cannot be reduced by aqueous NaBH4.

1b2 marks

Identify the two isomers with the formula C3H6O that can be reduced by aqueous NaBH4.

1c4 marks

When NaBH4 is used as a reducing agent followed by the addition of acid, the reduction products of ketones can exhibit optical isomerism, while the reduction products of aldehydes cannot.

i)
Classify the reduction products of aldehydes and ketones.
[2]

ii)
Explain why the reduction products of ketones can exhibit optical isomerism, while the reduction products of aldehydes cannot.

[2]

1d2 marks

Explain why the reduction product of a carbonyl compound, by NaBH4 and acid, cannot be a tertiary alcohol.

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2a
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4 marks

This question is about the reactions of an organic compound R.

Analysis of 15.0 g of an organic compound, R, showed it to contain 69.8% carbon, 2.79 g of oxygen and the remaining mass was hydrogen.

i)
Calculate the empirical formula of the organic compound R.

ii)
Compound R has a molecular mass of 86.0 g mol-1, deduce the molecular formula of compound R.

2b4 marks

Compound R is a straight chain organic compound. One isomer of compound R produces optical isomers of compound S when reacted with hydrogen cyanide followed by dilute acid.

Compounds R and S were tested with acidified potassium dichromate(VI) and Tollens reagent. The results are shown in Table 2.1.

Table 2.1

 

R

S

Acidified potassium dichromate(VI) 

Green solution

Green solution

Tollens reagent

Silver mirror formed

No visible change

Using this information and your answer from part (a), identify compounds R and S.
Justify your answer.

2c1 mark

Draw 3D representations of the two optical isomers of compound S.

2d1 mark

There are some isomers of compound S that do not display optical isomerism.

Draw the skeletal formula of these isomers.

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