1. Module 6

1.24. Page 6

Module 6 Lesson 4

Module 6—Petrochemicals

Lesson Summary


In this lesson you learned about carboxylic acids and esters, two classes of organic compounds.

 

In Lesson 4 you considered the following questions:

  • What are carboxylic acids and esters?

  • How are carboxylic acids and esters involved in the petrochemical industry?

During this lesson you synthesized an ester in a laboratory investigation, and you calculated the atom economy of an esterification reaction. Many chemical industries synthesize organic compounds such as carboxylic acids and esters.

 

Chemical industries consider atom economy and other principles of green chemistry when developing their processes to improve their scientific and business practices and to reduce their environmental impact. In Lesson 6 you will apply your knowledge from this lesson to investigate polymers—both natural and synthetic—that are produced by esterification reactions.

 

Lesson Glossary

 

atom economy: the percentage of material present in reactants that ends up in the desired product for a chemical process

 

carboxylic acids: a family of organic compounds characterized by the carboxyl group (–COOH)

 

esterification reaction: a chemical reaction in which a carboxylic acid and an alcohol combine to produce an ester and water

 

esters: a family of organic compounds characterized by the ester functional group (–COO–)