2-Butanone reacts with hydrogen cyanide to form an intermediate P. The intermediate P is then heated strongly with concentrated H ₂ SO ₄ to form a major product Q. Identify the IUPAC name of the major product Q.

Step-by-step solution

2-Butanone ( CH ₃ COCH ₂ CH ₃ ) undergoes nucleophilic addition with HCN to form a cyanohydrin intermediate P, which is 2-hydroxy-2-methylbutanenitrile. When this cyanohydrin is heated strongly with concentrated H ₂ SO ₄ , two reactions occur: the nitrile group ( - CN ) is hydrolyzed to a carboxylic acid group ( - COOH ), and the hydroxyl group ( - OH ) undergoes acid-catalyzed dehydration. Dehydration follows Saytzeff's rule, where hydrogen is eliminated from the adjacent carbon with fewer hydrogen atoms to yield