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In: Chemistry

Though they are not necessary in every situation, solvents are used when performing reactions for many...

Though they are not necessary in every situation, solvents are used when performing reactions for many reasons. What function does a solvent serve in a reaction (list two)? What characteristics are important to consider when selecting a solvent (list two)? This is regards to organic chemistry, please explain your answers, please!

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Expert Solution

Solvent is something that serves as a medium for a reaction. It is generally written along with the reagent on the reaction arrow and that may cause confusion at times. In regards to organic chemistry, functions of solvent are:

1) It is used to dissolve the reactants. We choose polar solvents for polar reactants and non-polar solvents for non polar reactants. In this case, the solvent does not directly participate in the reaction but only provides a medium for dissolving the reactants.

2) It can directly participate in the reaction by acting as a source of proton (acid) or lone pair (nucleophile) for the corresponding substrate. Here, solvent directly participates in the reaction.

Important things to keep in mind when selecting a solvent for an organic reaction is:

1) Is the solvent protic or aprotic: We need to consider whether the solvent is a source of protons or not because all unimolecular reactions(SN1/E1) need protic solvent for reaction to proceed as carbocation formed in rate determining step is stabilized in such a protic solvent. On the other hand, SN2/E2 is done in polar aprotic solvent.

2) Boiling temperature: Solvent selected should typically have a low boiling temperature so that it can easily be removed from the product after reaction completion.


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