How do carboxylic acids and esters differ in chemical structure?
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Esters have a hydroxyl group.
Esters have a carboxyl group.
Esters have a carboxyl group and hydrogen linkage off the alpha carbon.
Esters have a carboxyl group and ether linkage off the alpha carbon.
Esters have a carboxyl group and ether linkage off the alpha carbon
Esters have a carboxyl group.
To determine how carboxylic acids and esters differ in chemical structure, we need to compare the functional groups present in each compound.
1. Esters have a hydroxyl group: This statement is incorrect. Esters do not contain a hydroxyl group (-OH). Instead, they have an alkoxy group (-OR) attached to a carbonyl group.
2. Esters have a carboxyl group: This statement is also incorrect. Esters do not have a carboxyl group (-COOH). Carboxyl groups are found in carboxylic acids, not esters.
3. Esters have a carboxyl group and hydrogen linkage off the alpha carbon: This statement is partially correct. Esters have a carbonyl group (C=O) and an alkyl (or aryl) group linked to the carbonyl carbon (alpha carbon), not a hydrogen linkage. However, esters do not have a carboxyl group.
4. Esters have a carboxyl group and ether linkage off the alpha carbon: This statement is incorrect. Esters do not have a carboxyl group. Instead, they have a carbonyl group (C=O) and an alkoxy group (-OR) attached to the alpha carbon.
In summary, the correct statement is that esters have a carbonyl group (C=O) and an alkyl (or aryl) group attached to the carbonyl carbon (alpha carbon). They do not have a carboxyl group (-COOH), hydroxyl group (-OH), or ether linkage off the alpha carbon.
What's your problem with this?
Esters are RCOOCR'
Acids are RCOOH