Alcohols react with sodium leading to the evolution of which of the following gases?

Correct option is C

Sol: the correct answer is (c) hydrogen

Key points:

Alcohol with the chemical formula $$C_2H_5OH$$​ is ethanol.
Alcohols react with sodium metals to produce hydrogen gas and sodium alkoxide, which are both released.
In the process of forming sodium ethoxide from ethanol and sodium metal, hydrogen gas is produced.
​$$2 C_2H_5OH + 2 Na → 2 C_2H_5ONa + H_2$$​​
As a result, hydrogen is the gas that results from the reaction of ethanol and sodium.

Information booster:

• To determine whether ethanol is present in a mixture of organic molecules, the reaction of ethanol and salt is utilised as a confirmatory test.
• In this test, a supposedly alcoholic organic molecule is given a tiny bit of salt.
• It is confirmed that the unknown sample is ethanol if the addition of sodium metal to the liquid results in effervescence or rapidly rising bubbles that show the evolution of hydrogen gas.
• If the liquid does not bubble when sodium metal is added, the sample is not alcohol.
• This test is only a preliminary one; other tests are needed to definitively determine whether ethanol is present.