Conversion of Propionic acid to Diethyl ketone

Explanation

To convert propionic acid to diethyl ketone, we can follow these steps:

### Step 1: Draw the Structures
- **Propionic Acid**: The structure of propionic acid (C2H5COOH) consists of a two-carbon chain (ethyl) attached to a carboxylic acid group (COOH).
- **Diethyl Ketone**: The structure of diethyl ketone (C4H8O), also known as pentane-3-one, has a ketone functional group (C=O) located at the third carbon of a five-carbon chain.

### Step 2: React Propionic Acid with Calcium Hydroxide
- **Reaction**: Propionic acid reacts with calcium hydroxide (Ca(OH)2) to form calcium propanoate.
...