CAIE A Level Chemistry 9701 · Halogen compounds
A student plans to prepare 4-chloromethylbenzene from methylbenzene using chlorine and an anhydrous aluminium chloride catalyst.
(a) State the type of reaction and the condition needed for this preparation. (b) Explain why chlorobenzene is much less reactive than chloroethane towards nucleophilic substitution. (c) Suggest why the reaction in (a) produces a mixture of 2-chloromethylbenzene and 4-chloromethylbenzene rather than a single product.
4 marks, so the mark scheme is looking for about 4 separate creditworthy points. Making the same point twice in different words earns it once.
Explain means: Give the reasons or the mechanism: why or how something happens. Link each point to the next with because, so or which means. A list of facts with no links usually loses the reasoning marks.
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