In the aldol condensation reaction that produces dibenzalacetone, benzaldehyde is typically the limiting reagent. The reaction involves the condensation of benzaldehyde with acetone. Specifically, acetone acts as a nucleophile and benzaldehyde as the electrophile in the formation of intermediate compounds, which eventually lead to dibenzalacetone.
For the aldol condensation to proceed, it requires at least one molecule of acetone and two molecules of benzaldehyde. If there is an excess of acetone, the reaction will be limited by the amount of benzaldehyde present in the reaction mixture, making it the limiting reagent. Therefore, in the synthesis of dibenzalacetone, if benzaldehyde is in lesser quantity compared to acetone, it will limit the overall yield of the product.
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