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Related Concept Videos

Ethers from Alcohols: Alcohol Dehydration and Williamson Ether Synthesis02:29

Ethers from Alcohols: Alcohol Dehydration and Williamson Ether Synthesis

Overview
Ethers can be prepared from organic compounds by various methods. Some of them are discussed below,
Preparation of Ethers by Alcohol Dehydration
In this method, in the presence of protic acids, alcohol dehydrates to produce alkenes and ethers under different conditions. For example, in the presence of sulphuric acid, dehydration of ethanol at 413 K yields ethoxyethane, whereas it yields ethene at 443 K.
Physical Properties of Ethers02:17

Physical Properties of Ethers

Overview
An ether molecule has a net dipole moment due to the polarity of C–O bonds. Subsequently, boiling points of ethers are lower than those of alcohols of comparable molecular weight and slightly higher than those of hydrocarbons of comparable molecular weight (Table 1).
Ethers can act as hydrogen bond acceptors, making them more water-soluble than hydrocarbons, but since ethers cannot act as hydrogen bond donors, they are much less soluble in water than alcohols. Ethers are considered...
Ethers from Alkenes: Alcohol Addition and Alkoxymercuration-Demercuration02:35

Ethers from Alkenes: Alcohol Addition and Alkoxymercuration-Demercuration

Overview
Ethers can also be prepared from alkenes through acid-catalyzed addition of alcohols and alkoxymercuration–demercuration.
Preparation of Ethers by Acid-Catalyzed Addition of Alcohol to Alkenes
The acid-catalyzed addition of alcohol to an alkene involves treating the alkene with an excess of alcohol in the presence of an acid catalyst to form an ether under suitable conditions. The hydrogen will add to the less substituted carbon so that the nucleophile can attack the more substituted...
Crown Ethers02:36

Crown Ethers

Crown ethers are cyclic polyethers that contain multiple oxygen atoms, usually arranged in a regular pattern. The first crown ether was synthesized by Charles Pederson while working at DuPont in 1967. For this work, Pedersen was co-awarded the 1987 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. Crown ethers are named using the formula x-crown-y, where x is the total number of atoms in the ring and y is the number of ether oxygen atoms. The term 'crown' refers to the crown-like shape that these ether molecules take.
Structure and Nomenclature of Ethers02:28

Structure and Nomenclature of Ethers

Structure and Bonding
Ethers are organic compounds with an ether functional group which is characterized by an oxygen atom connected to two — identical or different — alkyl, aryl, or vinyl groups. The C–O–C linkage in dimethyl ether — the simplest ether — has an approximately tetrahedral bond angle of 110.3 degrees. The oxygen atom is sp3- hybridized, with the C–O distance being about 140 pm.
Classification of Ethers
Based on their attached substituent groups, ethers can be classified into two...
Types of Enols and Enolates01:19

Types of Enols and Enolates

Aldehydes and ketones form enols, although only about 1% of the enol is present at the equilibrium for simple monocarbonyl compounds. The enol form is undetectable for acetaldehyde, present as only 1.5 × 10−4 % of acetone, and present as only 1.2% of cyclohexanone. Two kinds of regioisomeric enols are possible for unsymmetrical ketones, and their net composition is 1% at equilibrium. This instability is due to the lower bond energy of C=C than the C=O group. The additional instability of enols...

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 21, 2026

Synthesis of Esters Via a Greener Steglich Esterification in Acetonitrile
06:52

Synthesis of Esters Via a Greener Steglich Esterification in Acetonitrile

Published on: October 30, 2018

Ammonium-based cellulose solvents suitable for homogeneous etherification.

Sarah Köhler1, Tim Liebert, Thomas Heinze

  • 1Centre of Excellence for Polysaccharide Research at Friedrich Schiller University of Jena, Humboldtstrasse 10, D-07743 Jena, Germany.

Macromolecular Bioscience
|July 23, 2009
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

New ammonium-based solvents effectively dissolve cellulose, enabling carboxymethyl cellulose synthesis with a high degree of substitution. Formic acid can enhance dissolution rates in these novel cellulose solvent systems.

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Pretreatment of Lignocellulosic Biomass with Low-cost Ionic Liquids
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Pretreatment of Lignocellulosic Biomass with Low-cost Ionic Liquids

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Highly Stereoselective Synthesis of 1,6-Ketoesters Mediated by Ionic Liquids: A Three-component Reaction Enabling Rapid Access to a New Class of Low Molecular Weight Gelators
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Highly Stereoselective Synthesis of 1,6-Ketoesters Mediated by Ionic Liquids: A Three-component Reaction Enabling Rapid Access to a New Class of Low Molecular Weight Gelators

Published on: November 27, 2015

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Last Updated: Jun 21, 2026

Synthesis of Esters Via a Greener Steglich Esterification in Acetonitrile
06:52

Synthesis of Esters Via a Greener Steglich Esterification in Acetonitrile

Published on: October 30, 2018

Pretreatment of Lignocellulosic Biomass with Low-cost Ionic Liquids
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Pretreatment of Lignocellulosic Biomass with Low-cost Ionic Liquids

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Highly Stereoselective Synthesis of 1,6-Ketoesters Mediated by Ionic Liquids: A Three-component Reaction Enabling Rapid Access to a New Class of Low Molecular Weight Gelators
06:31

Highly Stereoselective Synthesis of 1,6-Ketoesters Mediated by Ionic Liquids: A Three-component Reaction Enabling Rapid Access to a New Class of Low Molecular Weight Gelators

Published on: November 27, 2015

Area of Science:

  • Materials Science
  • Polymer Chemistry
  • Green Chemistry

Background:

  • Cellulose, a key biopolymer, requires effective and sustainable dissolution methods for its versatile applications.
  • Traditional cellulose solvents often pose environmental and economic challenges.
  • Development of novel, efficient cellulose solvent systems is crucial for advancing biomass processing and material innovation.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To synthesize and investigate novel ammonium-based cellulose solvents utilizing specific cations and carboxylate anions.
  • To evaluate the efficacy of these novel solvents in dissolving cellulose.
  • To explore the potential of these systems for cellulose derivatization, specifically carboxymethylation.

Main Methods:

  • Synthesis of ammonium-based organic salts with triethylmethylammonium and tributylmethylammonium cations and carboxylate anions.
  • Investigation of cellulose dissolution in the synthesized solvents, including the effect of formic acid.
  • Carboxymethylation of cellulose within the optimized solvent system and characterization of the resulting product.

Main Results:

  • Triethylmethylammonium formate was identified as an effective cellulose solvent.
  • Addition of small amounts of formic acid optimized the solvent's melting point and increased cellulose dissolution velocity.
  • Carboxymethyl cellulose with a high degree of substitution (up to 1.55) was successfully synthesized, exhibiting water solubility and an unconventional substitution pattern.

Conclusions:

  • Novel ammonium-based formate salts represent promising, efficient solvents for cellulose.
  • The developed system facilitates the synthesis of water-soluble carboxymethyl cellulose with tunable properties.
  • This research opens avenues for sustainable cellulose processing and the creation of advanced cellulose-based materials.