Why is it easier to convert a primary alkyl halide into an alcohol than a secondary or tertiary alkyl halide?

 It is easier to convert a primary alkyl halide into an alcohol than a secondary or tertiary alkyl halide because of the stability of the intermediate species formed during the reaction.

When a primary alkyl halide is treated with a nucleophile such as hydroxide ion, the intermediate species that forms is a carbocation, which is relatively stable because the carbon bearing the positive charge is bonded to only one other carbon atom. This stability allows the nucleophile to attack the carbocation, forming the alcohol.

On the other hand, when a secondary or tertiary alkyl halide is treated with a nucleophile, the intermediate species that forms is a more highly substituted carbocation, which is less stable because the carbon bearing the positive charge is bonded to more than one other carbon atom. This instability makes it less likely for the nucleophile to attack the carbocation, making it harder to convert the alkyl halide into an alcohol.

Another factor that makes primary alkyl halides more reactive is that the partial positive charge of the carbon atom bonded to halogen is more polarized than in secondary and tertiary alkyl halides because of the presence of only one other carbon atom in primary halides, hence the nucleophile can attack the carbon atom more effectively.

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