Question

how many constitutional isomers can possibly form during radical chlorination of 2,3-dimethylpentane? assume that only one chlorine atom is incorporated. group of answer choices 6 4 5 7 5.

Answer 1

The radical chlorination of 2,3-dimethylpentane can result in 5 unique constitutional isomers, as the chlorination can occur on one primary carbon (counted as one despite two positions), three secondary carbons, and one tertiary carbon.

Step-by-step explanation:

The question is about determining the number of possible constitutional isomers that can form during the radical chlorination of 2,3-dimethylpentane, assuming only one chlorine atom is incorporated. Each hydrogen of the 2,3-dimethylpentane can be replaced by a chlorine atom, but only unique placements result in different constitutional isomers. The placements possible are on the primary carbons (1 and 5), the secondary carbons (2, 3, and 4), and the tertiary carbon (the central carbon with two methyl groups attached). Since the primary carbons will give identical chlorides, we count them as one, the three secondary carbons will each give unique chlorides, and the tertiary carbon will also give a unique chloride. Hence, we have 1 + 3 + 1, which equals 5 unique constitutional isomers that can result from this reaction.