Carboxylic Acids and Derivatives for JEE

• Carboxylate ion is resonance stabilised
• −I groups near –COOH increase acidity
• HVZ halogenates the α-carbon
• Reactivity of derivatives: acyl chloride > anhydride > ester > amide

• Acidity: Cl₃CCOOH > Cl₂CHCOOH > ClCH₂COOH > CH₃COOH
• HVZ: RCH₂COOH + X₂/P → RCHXCOOH
• Decarboxylation: RCOONa + NaOH/CaO → RH
• Esterification is reversible and acid-catalysed

Printable Carboxylic Acids and Derivatives formula sheet: formulas, key ideas and traps on one page. Save it as a PDF for offline revision.

• Forgetting the distance effect of −I groups
• Wrong order of derivative reactivity
• Missing one carbon loss in decarboxylation

Appears frequently. Acidity order questions are quick marks.

Prerequisites: Aldehydes and Ketones.

Chapter names follow the current rationalised NCERT textbooks. Read these sections before solving PYQs.

Question. Arrange the following compounds in decreasing order of acidic strength: (I) CH₃COOH (II) ClCH₂COOH (III) Cl₂CHCOOH (IV) Cl₃CCOOH (V) FCH₂COOH Also, when compound (II) is treated with Cl₂/P followed by hydrolysis, identify the major product formed.

This example was solved twice independently and both solutions agree.

Full-chapter free lectures picked from YouTube search results by views, from established JEE channels (mostly in Hinglish). Use the subtopic list to jump straight to the part you need (timestamps come from each video's own chapter list). Watch one, then solve PYQs the same day.

• ALDEHYDES, KETONES & CARBOXYLIC ACIDS in One Shot: All Concepts & PYQs Covered | JEE Main & Advanced — JEE Wallah, 6:50:12
  Jump to a subtopic (49)

  • 00:00 Introduction
  • 01:14 Topics to be covered
  • 04:55 Channel Update
  • 05:05 The Catalyst for Chemistry
  • 07:12 Oxidation of alcohol
  • 17:19 Formation of carboxylic acid
  • 19:57 Hydrolysis
  • 25:12 Reduction
  • 38:10 NaBH4 & B2H6
  • 47:35 DIBAL-H
  • 57:05 Hydration of Alkyne & Wacker Process
  • 1:02:10 Ozonolysis
  • 1:06:00 Dry distillation of calcium salt of acid
  • 1:07:09 Rosenmund’s reduction
  • 1:08:48 Stephen’s reduction
  • 1:14:02 Etard reaction
  • 1:21:29 Gatterman-koch reaction
  • 1:39:40 Preparation of ketones
  • 1:45:54 Clemmensen & Wolf-kishner reduction
  • 1:59:53 Nucleophilic addition reactions
  • 2:18:17 Reaction with HCN
  • 2:27:28 Reaction with water
  • 2:33:09 Amine reaction
  • 2:45:40 Reaction with alcohol
  • 3:02:48 Beckman rearrangement
  • 3:08:39 Aldol and Cannizzaro reaction
  • 3:25:39 Aldol Condensation
  • 3:35:52 Intramolecular aldol Condensation
  • 3:53:05 Cannizzaro reaction
  • 4:04:40 Break
  • 4:24:32 Baeyer-Villiger oxidation reaction
  • 4:29:00 Tollen’s reagent
  • 4:40:57 Alpha-Hydroxy ketone
  • 4:50:48 Fehling & Benedict solution
  • 4:58:10 Important points
  • 5:02:52 Schiff’s reagent test
  • 5:06:23 Sodium hydrogen sulphite test
  • 5:15:39 Iodoform test
  • 5:27:25 Special case of Iodoform reaction
  • 5:35:14 Carboxylic acid from Grignard reagent
  • 5:46:18 Nucleophilic substitution reactions
  • 6:06:26 Reaction with ammonia
  • 6:10:14 Esterification
  • 6:18:41 Hydrolysis of Esters
  • 6:20:08 Decarboxylation - Heating
  • 6:26:58 Kolbe’s electrolysis
  • 6:31:06 Soda-Lime Decarboxylation
  • 6:45:35 Hunsdiecker reaction
  • 6:47:50 Thank you bachhon
• JEE Brief: Aldehyde Ketone Carboxylic Acid | One Shot for JEE Main and Advanced | Sakshi Vora — Vora Classes, 5:01:05

• Read the chapter in NCERT textbooks (official, free), then solve its NCERT Exemplar (official, free) questions.
• Chapter-wise past questions: JEE Main and Advanced PYQs and question bank.
• Timed practice tests: NTA Abhyas practice tests (official, free) and our free mock tests.
• See it move: interactive simulation.