Tertiary alcohols
Tertiary alcohols are produced by Grignard addition to ketones followed by acidic work-up.
- Functional group
- R3COH
- Also known as
- tertiary alcohol
Overview
Alcohols where the carbon bearing OH is attached to three carbon groups.
Tertiary alcohols are produced by Grignard addition to ketones followed by acidic work-up.
A tertiary alcohol has three carbon groups and no hydrogen on its OH-bearing carbon. It resists the ordinary oxidation conditions used to distinguish primary and secondary alcohols. Acid-catalysed dehydration can still form an alkene when an adjacent carbon provides a removable hydrogen.
Identifiers
- Functional group
- R3COH
- Also known as
- tertiary alcohol
Chemical identifiers
- SMILES
- CC(C)(C)O
Properties
- Negative oxidation result
- A tertiary alcohol retains the dichromate colour under the stated conditions.
- Reaction selection
- Oxidation resistance and acid-catalysed dehydration are different questions about the same molecule.
Related compounds
- 2-Methylpropan-2-ol
A tertiary alcohol that contrasts with primary and secondary oxidation examples.
Connected reactions
- Carbonyl addition: Grignard reagents → Tertiary alcohols
Grignard addition to ketones gives tertiary alcohols after work-up.
- Grignard addition co reactant: Ketones → Tertiary alcohols
Ketones plus Grignard reagents give tertiary alcohols after acidic work-up.
References
- Organic Chemistry: Oxidation of AlcoholsJohn McMurry · OpenStax Organic Chemistry · 2023
Supports functional-group chemistry used to curate the linked examples. Checked 2026-09-16; named examples are applications of textbook scope, without claimed experimental yields.
- PubChem Compound Summary: 2-Methylpropan-2-ol (CID 6386)National Center for Biotechnology Information · PubChem
Identity, molecular formula, molecular weight and aliases retrieved via PUG REST on 2026-09-08.