Isopentyl Acetate Synthesis Lab Report

The objective of this experiment was the synthesis of Isopentyl Acetate using an esterification reaction between acetic acid and Isopentyl Alcohol, using a strong acid as a catalyst. The product was washed, and distilled. This approach is called Fisher esterification, whereby esters are produced by refluxing a carboxylic acid and an alcohol in the presence of a concentrated acid catalyst. The ester produced had a banana smell odor. The extraction of the crude product was conducted using sodium bicarbonate followed by distillation. The resulting product obtained was 4.491g of isopentyl Acetate, indicating a 70.02 percent yield. Based on the IR data, it was verified that the end products were as desired. The Isopentyl Acetate carbonyl bond

Distillation usually works because organic compounds have boiling points which are different from each other. Usually a mixture of two compounds is placed in a round bottom flask. Heat is then applied to the mixture in the round bottom flask and as a result, the compound present in the mixture with the lower boiling point vaporizes first. The vapor then condenses in a condenser because the condenser has cool water to cool the vapor. The condensed vapor then travels into another flask at the other end of the distillation

According to the IR spectra received for the sample of Isopentyl Acetate, there were three main signals present. The first of the three signals was present at a wavenumber of 2,961.70 cm^-1. A signal at this wavenumber indicates that there are hydrogen-carbon bonds present in this sample of Isopentyl Acetate. According to the structural formula of Isopentyl Acetate, carbon-hydrogen bonds are indeed present in its structure. The second of the three signals was present at a wavenumber of 1,742.88 cm^-1 . A signal at this wavenumber indicates that there is an ester group present in this sample of Isopentyl Acetate. According to the structural formula of Isopentyl Acetate, a carbonyl group is present in its structure. The final of the three signals was present at a wavenumber of 1,239.88 cm^-1 . A signal at this wavenumber indicates that there is a carbon-oxygen group present in this sample of Isopentyl