Hydrolysis of an acid chloride with water yields carboxylic acid and which byproduct?

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Multiple Choice

Hydrolysis of an acid chloride with water yields carboxylic acid and which byproduct?

The key idea is nucleophilic acyl substitution: water attacks the carbonyl carbon of the acid chloride, the chloride is expelled, and you end up with the carboxylic acid plus hydrogen chloride. The reaction is R-COCl + H2O → R-COOH + HCl. In water, the HCl can exist as H3O+ and Cl−, but the stoichiometric byproduct is hydrochloric acid. The other options don’t fit because water is consumed, not produced; oxygen, or methane, aren’t formed in this hydrolysis process.

The key idea is nucleophilic acyl substitution: water attacks the carbonyl carbon of the acid chloride, the chloride is expelled, and you end up with the carboxylic acid plus hydrogen chloride. The reaction is R-COCl + H2O → R-COOH + HCl. In water, the HCl can exist as H3O+ and Cl−, but the stoichiometric byproduct is hydrochloric acid. The other options don’t fit because water is consumed, not produced; oxygen, or methane, aren’t formed in this hydrolysis process.

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