My teacher told me that isobutyraldehyde can't undergo aldol since its too sterically crowded and is thus an exception, and that it gives Cannizzaro on reaction with a base.
But in a mains '22 question, isobutyraldehyde reacts with formaldehyde to give an aldol product. What's going on here?
#Isobutyraldehyde Aldol or Cannizzaro?
shadow burrow
steel marlin
patent horizon
My teacher told me that isobutyraldehyde can't undergo aldol since its too steri...
Isobutyraldehyde does undergo aldol formation afaik
But it doesn't undergo the following condensation reaction (dehydration) because it doesn't have a beta hydrogen that can be abstracted to form a double bond.
@shadow burrow
Ah, on further research, I found that yes, isobutyraldehyde undergoes the Cannizarro rxn, but it's not that it can't undergo aldol formation,just that the rates are different.