Final answer:
Cyclohexanol can be converted to cyclohexene by a dehydration reaction where cyclohexanol is heated with a strong acid like sulfuric acid or phosphoric acid.
Step-by-step explanation:
To convert cyclohexanol to cyclohexene without using pyrolysis, one can employ a dehydration reaction. This involves removing a molecule of water (H2O) from cyclohexanol. In a typical reaction, cyclohexanol is heated with a strong acid, such as sulfuric acid (H2SO4) or phosphoric acid (H3PO4), which acts as a catalyst.
The heat and acid combine to eliminate water from the cyclic alcohol, forming the desired alkene, cyclohexene. This is a key reaction in organic chemistry and is commonly performed in a high school or college laboratory setting.
The reaction would look something like this:
Cyclohexanol (C6H11OH) → Cyclohexene (C6H10) + H2O
In essence, this is a form of elimination reaction where the hydroxyl group (OH) and a hydrogen atom on an adjacent carbon atom are removed to form water and an alkene.