Electrophilic Aromatic Substitution Reactions of Phenol

The -OH group directly attached to phenol's ring is a strong ACTIVATING, ortho/para-DIRECTING group (it donates electron density into the ring by resonance), so phenol undergoes electrophilic aromatic substitution far more readily than benzene, and preferentially at the ortho and para positions. Eight named reactions of this type are covered here: nitrosation, nitration, sulphonation, halogenation, Kolbe's reaction, the …