Chapter 21, Problem 81A

Interpretation Introduction

Interpretation:

The reason for usefulness of unsaturated hydrocarbons over saturated hydrocarbons as a starting material in chemical manufacturing needs to be explained.

Concept introduction:

The hydrocarbon compounds contain compound that are made up of only hydrogen and carbon atoms. The hydrocarbon compounds that contains single bond(s) between carbon atom(s) are said to be saturated hydrocarbon whereas hydrocarbon compounds that contains multiple bond(s) between carbon atom(s) are said to be unsaturated hydrocarbon.

Explanation of Solution

Compared to saturated hydrocarbons, unsaturated hydrocarbons are more useful for the synthesis of chemical compounds due to presence of pi-bonds in unsaturated hydrocarbons which increases the electron density on carbon atoms and thus results in higher reactivity. Saturated hydrocarbons are generally unreactive or inert in nature.

In order to react saturated hydrocarbons, intensive conditions such as harsh energy is required whereas on other hand unsaturated hydrocarbons are much more reactive and generally undergo numerous addition reactions.