Complete the following reaction sequence and give the name of major product 'P'. CH₃-CH₂-C N [ (ii) H₃O^+] (i) OH^-/H₂O/ [ (iv) H₂O] (iii) Cl₂/ Red P P (Major product)

Step-by-step solution

Hydrolysis of the nitrile. Propanenitrile on basic hydrolysis followed by acidic workup gives propanoic acid: CH₃-CH₂-C N [(ii) H₃O^+] (i) OH^-/H₂O/ CH₃-CH₂-COOH Hell - Volhard - Zelinsky (HVZ) reaction. Propanoic acid has an sp^3 -carbon bearing two -hydrogens. In the HVZ reaction, Cl₂ in the presence of red phosphorus selectively replaces one -hydrogen by chlorine, giving the -chloro acid after aqueous workup: CH₃-CH₂-COOH [(iv) H₂O] (iii) Cl₂/ Red P CH₃-CH(Cl)-COOH Hence, the major product P is 2 -chloropropanoi