Unit IV – Alcohols & Phenols

Pharmaceutical Organic Chemistry – I (BP202T)

📘 Unit IV Syllabus

Classification, nomenclature, preparation, physical and chemical properties of alcohols and phenols, reactions of alcohols and phenols, and their pharmaceutical importance.

🧪 Introduction

Alcohols and phenols are organic compounds containing hydroxyl (–OH) groups. Alcohols have the –OH group attached to an aliphatic carbon, whereas phenols have the –OH group attached directly to an aromatic ring.

🧱 Classification

• Primary (1°), Secondary (2°), and Tertiary (3°) alcohols
• Monohydric, dihydric, and trihydric alcohols
• Monohydric and polyhydric phenols

⚗️ Preparation of Alcohols

• Hydration of alkenes
• Reduction of aldehydes and ketones
• Hydrolysis of alkyl halides

🔥 Reactions of Alcohols

• Oxidation
• Dehydration
• Esterification

⚡ Reactions of Phenols

• Electrophilic substitution reactions
• Kolbe reaction
• Reimer–Tiemann reaction

💊 Pharmaceutical Importance

Alcohols and phenols are widely used as antiseptics, disinfectants, solvents, and intermediates in drug synthesis.