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I learnt from a certain textbook that aldehydes and formic acid respond positively to Tollens', Fehling's, Benedict's, Schiff's and HgCl2 tests.

However, in another textbook I read that even alpha-hydroxy ketones respond positively to these tests. What is the reason behind this? I thought ketones are not oxidizable (unless under drastic conditions).

Fructose is an alpha-hydroxy ketone, but all alpha-hydroxy ketones are not fructose. In fructose there is a terminal hydroxy group which facilitates Tollens' test, etc. in basic medium. But why do alpha-hydroxy ketones like benzoin give these tests even though there is no terminal hydroxy group? That part is still unclear to me. Could you please answer that part?

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Its because of two tautomerizations happening, the ketone becomes en-ol, and then another tautomerization happens with the original hydroxy group (which is terminal), making it an aldehyde group. All three forms exist in equilibrium, so it responds to Tollens' test.

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    $\begingroup$ Not all alpha hydroxy ketones can undergo double tautomerization to form an aldehyde. $\endgroup$
    – MrObjectOriented
    Commented May 26, 2017 at 10:16