Which of the following acids is a vitamin ?

Solution

Chemistry ma’am · 3 steps

Ask what each acid does in your body or the lab: only ascorbic acid is vitamin C.

1. What a vitamin is. A vitamin is an organic compound needed in small amounts for normal health. The body cannot make enough of it, so it must come from food. Lack of it causes a deficiency disease.

   Acid	Structure	What it is
   Saccharic acid	HOOC-(CHOH)₄-COOH	made in the lab by oxidising glucose with HNO₃
   Ascorbic acid	C₆H₈O₆, a ring lactone with an enediol group	vitamin C, prevents scurvy
   Aspartic acid	HOOC-CH₂-CH(NH₂)-COOH	an amino acid that builds proteins
   Adipic acid	HOOC-(CH₂)₄-COOH	an industrial monomer for nylon-6,6

2. The name helps. "Ascorbic" means "anti-scurvy". Vitamin C is water soluble and is not stored in the body, so it must be taken in regularly from citrus fruits and green vegetables.
3. So. Ascorbic acid is the only vitamin here, so the answer is (b).

The idea to keep. Learn each vitamin together with its chemical name and its deficiency disease. Vitamin C is ascorbic acid, and its lack causes scurvy.

Answer from the NTA final answer key. Solution by PrepWiser.