NCERT Books Free Download for Class 12 Chemistry Chapter 11 - Alcohols, Phenols, and Ethers

Phenol is produced naturally in plants such as grapes, apples, and raisins, and it can also be made synthetically using a series of chemical processes involving the addition of hydrogen, carbon dioxide, and other ingredients.

Phenol has been known for almost 200 years. Its use in leather making dates back to 1880 when a Frenchman named Auguste Escoffier mixed phenol with oils from rapeseed and Eucalyptus to make the specialized Plasticizer Phenol Ether. In the modern-day, producing Phenol for the textile industry is now gaining heights. To know more, sign up on the Vedantu app.

Alcohols and phenols are examples of hydroxyl (-OH) compounds. They are oxidized by an acidic solution, often Pyridinium Chlorochromate (PCC), into Aldehydes, Carboxylic Acids or Ketones, and Phenols to give products with an identifiable or characteristic Chromophore. For example, the oxidation of Ethanol to Acetone or Phenol to Cresol is commonly used as a diagnostic test for PCC. Ethanol is oxidized to Acetaldehyde and Phenol is oxidized to Cresol. The oxidation products depend on the acid catalyst and the temperature of the reaction.

Structural Formula: -R-OH and for the (R) group compounds containing –CH₃, –CH₂-CH₃, –CH=CH₂, etc are called primary alcohols. So when compared to primary alcohols, the secondary alcohol structure contains a higher number of atoms. The presence of the -OH group makes them acidic in nature, so they can be protonated. Thus, they are called phenols. Phenol, otherwise known as carbolic acid, was first derived in the early 19^th century from coal tar.

But, in modern times, phenol is produced commercially in factories and that also in a synthetic manner. In the laboratory, phenols are prepared from benzene derivatives by using any of the following methods:

• From haloarenes

• From benzene sulphonic acid

• From diazonium salts

• From cumene
  
  

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The free study materials for Class 12 Chemistry Chapter 11 - Alcohols, Phenols, and Ethers can be downloaded from the Vedantu site and app.