Chapter 17: Aldehydes and Ketones. Nucleophilic Addition to C=O
Reduction to Hydrocarbons
(review of Chapter 12)
Clemmensen Reduction
(acidic conditions)
Zn(Hg) in HCl reduced the
C=O
into -
CH
2
-
Wolff-Kishner Reduction
(basic conditions)
NH
2
NH
2
/ KOH / ethylene glycol (a high boiling solvent) reduces the
C=O
into -
CH
2
-
Overview
These reduction methods do not reduce
C=C
,
C
º
C
or -
CO
2
H
The choice of method should be made based on the tolerance of other functional groups to the acidic or basic reaction conditions.
