# A chemist wants to make a pure, dry sample of the organic compound propan-1-ol starting from propene. Outline the steps the chemist should carry out, including any reagents and conditions needed, to obtain a pure, dry sample of propan-1-ol.

> WJEC A-Level Chemistry (Wales) — 4.8 Organic synthesis and analysis · Outline · 5 marks

> Propene is an alkene that can be converted into propan-1-ol by reacting it with steam in the presence of an acid catalyst. The product mixture may contain unreacted propene gas, water, and traces of acid.

## Mark scheme (5 marks)

1. React propene with steam (water) in the presence of an acid catalyst / phosphoric acid catalyst / H₃PO₄
2. Collect / condense the gaseous product to obtain the liquid propan-1-ol mixture
3. Add a suitable base / sodium carbonate / sodium hydroxide solution to neutralise / remove the acid catalyst from the product
4. Add a drying agent (e.g. anhydrous calcium chloride / anhydrous magnesium sulfate) to remove water
5. Distil the dried liquid and collect the fraction at the boiling point of propan-1-ol (97 °C) to obtain the pure product

## Related

- [Revision notes for WJEC A-Level Chemistry (Wales)](https://www.gradenine.co.uk/learn)
- [How to answer "Outline" questions](https://www.gradenine.co.uk/tools/command-word-cheatsheet)
- [Practice this with AI marking (free)](https://www.gradenine.co.uk/start)

---
Source: [GradeNine](https://www.gradenine.co.uk/q/a-chemist-wants-to-make-a-1bfcdd7b) · Published by Druglandscape Ltd.