An unknown alkene 'X' on vigorous oxidation with acidic KMnO ₄ yields a mixture of propan-2-one and ethanoic acid as the major organic products. The IUPAC name of the alkene 'X' is:

Step-by-step solution

Vigorous oxidation of alkenes with acidic KMnO ₄ cleaves the C=C double bond. The products are propan-2-one ( CH ₃ -CO-CH ₃ ) and ethanoic acid ( CH ₃ COOH ). Propan-2-one is a ketone, which indicates that one of the doubly bonded carbons was disubstituted, specifically a =C(CH ₃)₂ group. Ethanoic acid is a carboxylic acid, which indicates that the other doubly bonded carbon had one hydrogen atom and one methyl group, specifically a =CH-CH ₃ group. Joining these two fragments at the double bond gives the structure