Alcohols react with active metals e.g. Na. K etc. to give corresponding alkoxides. Write down the decreasing order of reactivity of sodium metal towards primary, secondary and tertiary alcohols. 

This is a short answer type question as classified in NCERT Exemplar

The decreasing order of reactivity of alcohol with sodium metal:

Tertiary Alcohols > Secondary Alcohols   > Primary Alcohols 

When alcohol reacts with active metals  e.g. Na. K etc., the O-H bond of alcohols breaks to form the corresponding alkoxide. The alkyl  group is electron donating and has +I effect due to which the O-H bond becomes strong and hence, the reactivity of alcohol decreases.

Fig: +I effect of alkyl group of alcohol

<p><span data-teams="true">This is a short answer type question as classified in NCERT Exemplar</span></p><p>The decreasing order of reactivity of alcohol with sodium metal:</p><p>Tertiary Alcohols &gt; Secondary Alcohols &nbsp; &gt; Primary Alcohols&nbsp;</p><p>When alcohol reacts with active metals <strong>&nbsp;</strong>e.g. Na. K etc., the O-H bond of alcohols breaks to form the corresponding alkoxide. The alkyl&nbsp; group is electron donating and has +I effect due to which the O-H bond becomes strong and hence, the reactivity of alcohol decreases.</p><div><div><picture><source srcset="https://images.shiksha.com/mediadata/images/articles/1746092943phpgpTfnQ_480x360.jpeg" media=" (max-width: 500px)"><img src="https://images.shiksha.com/mediadata/images/articles/1746092943phpgpTfnQ.jpeg" alt="" width="488" height="200"></picture></div><div><p>Fig: +I effect of alkyl group of alcohol</p></div></div>

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