Lesson 3.3.9.2

3.3.9.2 Acylation Quiz: AQA Chemistry, Unit 3

20 questions

Written by Revision Ninja · Last reviewed 11 October 2026

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Lesson 3.3.9.2, Acylation: 20 multiple choice questions for the AQA Chemistry (7405), Unit 3: Organic chemistry, written with Revision Ninja.

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The 20 questions

  1. What is the functional group of an acyl chloride?

    • -CONH2
    • -COOCH3
    • -COOH
    • -COCl

  2. What is the usual by-product when ethanoic anhydride reacts with water?

    • Hydrogen chloride
    • Ethanol
    • Ethanal
    • Ethanoic acid

  3. What is formed when ethanoyl chloride reacts with water?

    • Ethanoic acid and hydrogen chloride
    • Ethanol and hydrogen chloride
    • Ethanamide and hydrogen
    • Ethanal and water

  4. What is formed when ethanoyl chloride reacts with ethanol?

    • Ethanamide and water
    • Ethanoic acid and ethane
    • Ethanoic anhydride and hydrogen
    • Ethyl ethanoate and hydrogen chloride

  5. What is the main industrial advantage of ethanoic anhydride over ethanoyl chloride in making aspirin?

    • It produces a higher melting point product, which makes the aspirin easier to purify
    • It is cheaper and gives ethanoic acid rather than corrosive hydrogen chloride as by-product
    • It requires no catalyst at any stage, which makes the process cheaper to operate
    • It reacts with salicylic acid to give pure ethanol as the only organic product formed

  6. Which product forms when ethanoyl chloride reacts with ammonia?

    • Ethanoic acid and nitrogen
    • Ethanamide and ammonium chloride
    • Ethanol and ammonium chloride
    • Ethanal and hydrogen

  7. What is the name of the product when ethanoyl chloride reacts with phenylamine?

    • Ethanoic phenylanhydride
    • Phenylethanoic acid
    • N-phenylethanamide
    • Phenyl ethanoate

  8. What is the first step in the addition-elimination reaction of ethanoyl chloride with water?

    • Chloride ion leaves the carbonyl carbon directly in the first step of the reaction
    • The C=O bond is broken to give ethanal as the first organic intermediate formed
    • A proton is removed from the methyl group to start the substitution of the chlorine
    • The oxygen of water attacks the carbonyl carbon, forming a tetrahedral intermediate

  9. In the second step of the reaction of an acyl chloride with an alcohol, which species is eliminated?

    • Chloride ion, which leaves as HCl
    • Hydroxide ion, which leaves as water
    • Methyl group, which leaves as CH4
    • Hydrogen atom, which leaves as H2

  10. Which compound is 2-ethanoyloxybenzoic acid, the active ingredient of aspirin?

    • Phenylethanone
    • Benzoic acid
    • Aspirin
    • Salicylic acid

  11. Which reagent is used industrially to acylate salicylic acid to make aspirin?

    • Methanoic acid
    • Ethanoic anhydride
    • Ethyl ethanoate
    • Ethanal

  12. What is the relative molecular mass of aspirin, C9H8O4?

    • 164
    • 152
    • 180
    • 192

  13. Why does an acyl chloride react with water even though water is only a weak nucleophile?

    • Hydrogen chloride acts as a catalyst that speeds up the reaction and is never consumed in it
    • Water is a strong nucleophile that always attacks the oxygen atom of the acyl chloride first
    • The carbonyl carbon is strongly electrophilic because the C=O and C-Cl bonds withdraw electron density from it
    • The acyl chloride is ionic and dissolves completely in water to give free ions in solution

  14. Which product forms when ethanoyl chloride reacts with methylamine?

    • Ethanamide
    • Methyl ethanoate
    • Ethanoic acid
    • N-methylethanamide

  15. Which equation shows the reaction of ethanoic anhydride with ethanol?

    • (CH3CO)2O + C2H5OH -> CH3COOC2H5 + CH3COOH
    • (CH3CO)2O + C2H5OH -> CH3CH2OH + CH3COCl
    • (CH3CO)2O + C2H5OH -> CH3CHO + C2H5COOH
    • (CH3CO)2O + C2H5OH -> CH3COCH3 + H2O

  16. What class of compound is formed when an acyl chloride reacts with ammonia?

    • Amide
    • Primary amine
    • Ester
    • Ketone

  17. In the reaction of ethanoyl chloride with an amine, the HCl by-product is usually removed by which means?

    • Excess amine acting as a base
    • Adding more acyl chloride
    • Heating the mixture to 1000 K
    • Adding a second molecule of water

  18. Why are acyl chlorides preferred to carboxylic acids for making amides?

    • Carboxylic acids cannot form C-N bonds at all, even with strong heating and catalysts
    • Acyl chlorides are more electrophilic and react readily with amines under mild conditions
    • Acyl chlorides contain no carbonyl group, so they cannot be attacked by nucleophiles
    • Carboxylic acids are gases at room temperature, so they cannot be used in liquid reactions

  19. Ethanoyl chloride reacts with ethanol. If 0.20 mol of ethanol reacts completely, how many moles of ethyl ethanoate form?

    • 0.05 mol
    • 0.20 mol
    • 0.40 mol
    • 0.10 mol

  20. Why is the purity of aspirin tested by melting point?

    • Melting point measures the molar mass of the sample directly and so confirms its formula
    • Impure solids always melt at a higher temperature, so a higher value means more pure
    • A high melting point proves that aspirin is a salt rather than a covalent compound
    • A sharp melting point close to the literature value indicates a pure sample

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