What products are obtained when formaldehyde () is heated with concentrated () sodium hydroxide solution?
Answer and explanation
Correct answer: D. Methanol and sodium formate
- Step 1: Carbonyl compounds lacking alpha-hydrogens undergo disproportionation (redox) in concentrated alkali via the Cannizzaro reaction.
- Step 2: One molecule of formaldehyde is reduced to methanol (), while the other molecule is oxidized to sodium formate ().
Answer
Methanol and sodium formate.
Why not the others: Ethanol and acetate have two-carbon backbones; formic acid cannot exist as a free acid in strongly alkaline solution; and polymerization is not the primary base-catalyzed pathway.
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