Final answer:
Sodium amide (NaNH2) is a strong base that can deprotonate 1-hexyne by removing a proton to form a negatively charged acetylide ion and ammonia, making statement 'a.' true.
Step-by-step explanation:
Sodium amide (NaNH2) is indeed a strong base capable of deprotonating 1-hexyne. This process involves the removal of a proton (H+) from 1-hexyne, a terminal alkyne, to form a negatively charged acetylide ion and ammonia (NH3). With 1-hexyne having a pKa of around 25 and ammonia a pKa of 38, this demonstrates that sodium amide is a strong enough base to facilitate this deprotonation, making statement 'a.' true. The discrepancy between the pKa values indicates that the acetylide ion is a much weaker acid than ammonia, hence a stronger base, such as sodium amide, is required for the deprotonation to occur efficiently.