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Question

Q.Write the structure of product when D-Glucose reacts with the following: (any three)

(a) HIHI
(b) Conc. HNO3HNO_3
(c) Br2Br_2 water
(d) HCNHCN
CBSECBSE Class XII Board 2023Subjective· 3mImportance★★★★★
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D-Glucose reacts differently with each reagent: HI reduces it to n-hexane (a straight-chain hydrocarbon), conc. HNO₃ oxidises both ends to give saccharic acid (a dicarboxylic acid), Br₂ water selectively oxidises the aldehyde group to gluconic acid (a monocarboxylic acid), and HCN adds to the carbonyl to form a cyanohydrin (which can be hydrolysed to a longer-chain acid). The key is recognising which functional group each reagent attacks.

The chemistry of D-glucose is a beautiful story of how a single molecule can be transformed in completely different ways depending on the reagent. The secret lies in glucose’s dual nature: it has an aldehyde group (at C1) and multiple alcohol groups (at C2–C6). Each reagent we’ll discuss targets a specific part of this structure.

Let’s work through each reaction step by step.


1. Reaction with HI (Hydroiodic acid)

Concept: HI is a powerful reducing agent. In hot, concentrated conditions, it doesn’t just reduce the aldehyde — it strips away all oxygen atoms from the molecule, replacing them with hydrogen. This is a reductive deoxygenation.

Step-by-step:

  1. D-Glucose has the formula C6H12O6\mathrm{C_6H_{12}O_6}. The aldehyde group (−CHO-\mathrm{CHO}) and the five hydroxyl groups (−OH-\mathrm{OH}) are all susceptible.
  2. Hot HI cleaves each C−O\mathrm{C-O} bond, replacing oxygen with hydrogen. The reaction proceeds through formation of alkyl iodides, which are then reduced.
  3. Every oxygen atom is removed: the ring oxygen (if in cyclic form) and all −OH\mathrm{-OH} groups are converted to −H\mathrm{-H}.
  4. What remains is a straight chain of six carbon atoms, fully saturated — that is, n-hexane (CH3−CH2−CH2−CH2−CH2−CH3\mathrm{CH_3-CH_2-CH_2-CH_2-CH_2-CH_3}).
Watch out

A common mistake is to think HI only reduces the aldehyde to an alcohol. In fact, under these vigorous conditions, HI removes all oxygen, not just the carbonyl oxygen. The product is a hydrocarbon, not an alcohol.

Product: n-Hexane


2. Reaction with Conc. HNO₃ (Concentrated Nitric Acid)

Concept: Conc. HNO₃ is a strong oxidising agent. It oxidises both terminal carbon atoms — the aldehyde at C1 and the primary alcohol at C6 — to carboxylic acid groups. This is because both ends of the open-chain form are oxidisable.

Step-by-step:

  1. In open-chain D-glucose, C1 is an aldehyde (−CHO-\mathrm{CHO}) and C6 is a primary alcohol (−CH2OH-\mathrm{CH_2OH}).
  2. Conc. HNO₃ first oxidises the aldehyde to a carboxylic acid (−COOH-\mathrm{COOH}) at C1.
  3. Simultaneously, it oxidises the primary alcohol at C6 to another carboxylic acid (−COOH-\mathrm{COOH}).
  4. The four middle carbon atoms (C2–C5) retain their hydroxyl groups, but note that the molecule now has two terminal −COOH\mathrm{-COOH} groups.
  5. The product is a dicarboxylic acid called saccharic acid (also known as glucaric acid). Its structure is HOOC−(CHOH)4−COOH\mathrm{HOOC-(CHOH)_4-COOH}.
Tip

This reaction is a classic test to distinguish between glucose and fructose. Fructose, being a ketose, gives a mixture of acids (including saccharic acid and others) under similar conditions, but glucose cleanly gives saccharic acid because both ends are oxidised symmetrically.

Product: Saccharic acid (glucaric acid)


3. Reaction with Br₂ Water (Bromine Water)

Concept: Bromine water (Br2/H2O\mathrm{Br_2/H_2O}) is a mild oxidising agent. It selectively oxidises the aldehyde group to a carboxylic acid, but it does not touch the primary alcohol at C6 or the secondary alcohols. This selectivity is key.

Step-by-step:

  1. In neutral or slightly acidic conditions, Br2\mathrm{Br_2} water oxidises the −CHO-\mathrm{CHO} group of glucose to −COOH-\mathrm{COOH}.
  2. The reaction proceeds via formation of a bromohydrin intermediate, which then loses HBr to give the acid.
  3. The product is gluconic acid: HOCH2−(CHOH)4−COOH\mathrm{HOCH_2-(CHOH)_4-COOH}. Notice that C6 remains as −CH2OH-\mathrm{CH_2OH} (primary alcohol), and only C1 is oxidised.
  4. This is a monocarboxylic acid, unlike the dicarboxylic acid from HNO₃. …

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