Question

Reaction of the acetic acid with isotopically labelled $C{H}_{3}OH$ and catalytic sulphuric acid gives :

• A.
• B.
• C.
• D. Equal amount of A and B

Answer 1

The correct option is A

Esterification is the process of combining an organic acid (RCOOH) with an alcohol (ROH) to form an ester (RCOOR) and water; or a chemical reaction resulting in the formation of at least one ester product. Ester is obtained by an esterification reaction of an alcohol and a carboxylic acid.

$\text{Acid + Alcohol}\stackrel{H^{+}}{\rightleftharpoons }\underset{FruitySmell}{\text{Ester}}+\text{Water}$

Mechanism of esterification reaction involves three steps:
1) Protonation of carboxylic acids:
2) Nucleophilic attack of alcohol​:
3) Formation of ester​:

From the mechanism we can tell that, oxygen of alcohol is retained in ester in acid catalysed esterification. Hence, the correct answer is option (a).