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An acetal is a compound with two ether groups bonded to the same carbon atom, while a ketal has two ether groups bonded to different carbon atoms.
Acetals and ketals are both types of organic compounds that contain ether functional groups. The difference between the two lies in the location of the ether groups. In an acetal, both ether groups are attached to the same carbon atom, while in a ketal, the ether groups are attached to different carbon atoms.
One example of an acetal is dimethoxymethane, which has two methoxy (CH3O) groups attached to the same carbon atom. Acetals are commonly used as protecting groups in organic synthesis, as they can be easily removed under mild conditions to reveal the original functional group.
A common example of a ketal is 2,2-dimethyl-1,3-dioxolane, which has two ether groups attached to different carbon atoms. Ketals are often used as solvents or as intermediates in organic synthesis.
Both acetals and ketals are important functional groups in organic chemistry, and their properties and reactions are studied extensively in A-Level Biology and Chemistry courses.
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