Tests for Alcohols

Alcohols are organic compounds containing hydroxyl functional group. They are formed by replacing hydrogen atom of a hydrocarbon with a –OH group. Alcohols are classified as monohydric, dihydric and trihydric depending on the number of hydroxyl group. They are further classified as primary (1°), secondary (2°) and tertiary (3°) according to the hydroxyl group is attached to primary, secondary and tertiary carbon atoms respectively. Methyl alcohol and ethyl alcohol are the simplest alcohols.

This video explains how to identify alcohols using some simple tests.