Alcohols, Phenols and Ethers - Nomenclature and methods of preparation

IUPAC Nomenclature: Alcohols are named by replacing the '-e' of the parent alkane with '-ol'. For phenols, the parent structure is $C_6H_5OH$. Ethers are named as 'alkoxyalkanes' where the smaller alkyl group is the 'alkoxy' part.

Preparation of Alcohols via Hydration: Acid-catalyzed hydration of alkenes follows Markovnikov's rule, e.g., $CH_3CH=CH_2 + H_2O \xrightarrow{H^+} CH_3CH(OH)CH_3$.

Hydroboration-Oxidation: A method to prepare alcohols from alkenes yielding anti-Markovnikov products. The reagent used is diborane ($B_2H_6$) followed by alkaline $H_2O_2$.

Grignard Synthesis: Reaction of $RMgX$ with formaldehyde gives a primary ($1^\circ$) alcohol, with other aldehydes gives a secondary ($2^\circ$) alcohol, and with ketones gives a tertiary ($3^\circ$) alcohol.

Preparation of Phenol from Cumene: Isopropylbenzene ($C_6H_5CH(CH_3)_2$) is oxidized by air to cumene hydroperoxide, which is then hydrolyzed by dilute acid to yield phenol ($C_6H_5OH$) and acetone ($CH_3COCH_3$).

Williamson Ether Synthesis: An $S_N2$ reaction between a primary alkyl halide and a sodium alkoxide ($R-X + R'O^-Na^+ \rightarrow R-O-R' + NaX$). It is the preferred method for preparing unsymmetrical ethers.

Dehydration of Alcohols: At $413 K$ in the presence of $H_2SO_4$, primary alcohols undergo intermolecular dehydration to form ethers: $2C_2H_5OH \xrightarrow{H_2SO_4, 413K} C_2H_5OC_2H_5 + H_2O$.