What are electrophilic addition reactions of alkenes?

Alkenes contain a pi bond, which is a site of high electron density, since it contains a pair of electrons delocalised around the two bonded carbon atoms. Because of this, the pi bond can act as a nucleophile (something which can act as an electron pair donor), and donate a pair of electrons to an electrophile (something which acts as an electron pair acceptor). The pi bond breaks, and the alkene forms a new bond with the atoms of the electrophile it donated the pair of electrons to, whilst a bond in the electrophile breaks. We end up with something called an intermediate: the alkene ends up having a positive charge, and is called a carbocation, and the group of atoms left from the electrophile has a negative charge. The pair of electrons of the negatively charged group is donated to the carbocation to form a new bond. Electrophilic addition reactions are very common with an alkene and molecules like the hydrogen halides (such as HCl, HBr, HI) and the halogens (such as Br2).

JM
Answered by Jessica M. Chemistry tutor

2119 Views

See similar Chemistry A Level tutors

Related Chemistry A Level answers

All answers ▸

How do induced dipole to dipole interactions (London forces) occur?


"Sulfur Dioxide can be represented as a sulfur atom with double bonds to each of two oxygen atoms, explain the shape of this molecule and predict the bond angle".


In terms of reaction mechanisms, what exactly is the rate-determining step?


Use the following data to explain why NaCl is soluble in water: ∆H = +31 kJmol-1, S(Na+(aq)) = 320.9 JK-1mol-1, S(Cl-(aq)) = 56.5 JK-1mol-1, S(NaCl(s)) = 72.1 JK-1mol-1 Are there any temperatures at which you would not expect NaCl to dissolve?


We're here to help

contact us iconContact usWhatsapp logoMessage us on Whatsapptelephone icon+44 (0) 203 773 6020
Facebook logoInstagram logoLinkedIn logo

© MyTutorWeb Ltd 2013–2025

Terms & Conditions|Privacy Policy
Cookie Preferences