Question

Ethyl alcohol exhibits acidic character on reacting with

• A. hydrogen iodide
• B. acetic acid
• C. sodium metal
• D. all of these

Answer 1

Answer: (C)

sodium metal

Answer 2

$2 CH _{3} CH _{2} OH + \underset{\text{metal}}{Na} \rightarrow 2 CH _{3} CH _{2} O ^{-} Na ^{+}+ H _{2}$

Formation of alkoxide indicates the acidic nature of alcohols as alkoxides are electrovalent compounds and are written as $RO ^{-} M ^{+}$.