Identify the major product formed in the following reaction sequence.

Step-by-step solution

The given reaction sequence consists of two steps: Dehydration of an alcohol. The reactant is 1-methylcyclohexanol. When heated with a strong acid like H ₃ PO ₄ , it undergoes acid-catalyzed dehydration. The hydroxyl group is protonated and leaves as a water molecule, forming a stable tertiary carbocation at the C1 position. According to Zaitsev's rule, the major product is the most substituted alkene. Elimination of a proton from the adjacent ring carbon (C2 or C6) yields 1-methylcyclohexene (a trisubstituted alke