The reaction, CF₃CH₂OH + CH₃CH₂ONa CF₃CH₂ONa + CH₃CH₂OH suggests that:

Step-by-step solution

The given reaction is an acid-base reaction where CF₃CH₂OH acts as an acid and CH₃CH₂ONa acts as a base. The reaction proceeds in the forward direction, which implies that a stronger acid and a stronger base react to form a weaker acid and a weaker base. Here, CF₃CH₂OH donates a proton to the ethoxide ion ( CH₃CH₂O^- ) to form ethanol ( CH₃CH₂OH ). This indicates that CF₃CH₂OH (2,2,2-trifluoroethanol) is a stronger acid than CH₃CH₂OH (ethanol). The strong -I effect of the three fluorine atoms stabilizes the CF₃CH₂O