: OCR past-paper questions pack

Polyesters and polyamides

Past-paper questions pack

Name
Class
Date set
Date due
Score	/ 62

Questions are numbered; the mark schemes (the answer key) follow on separate pages so the question pages can be handed out alone. www.chemistryaleveltutor.com

OCR AS and A-level Chemistry past-paper questions since 2016 · 26 parts · mark schemes follow the questions · www.chemistryaleveltutor.com · Questions and mark schemes © OCR

1. June 2025 · Paper 2 · Q7 · 1 marks ·

7 What are the organic products of the acid hydrolysis of CH3CH2CONHCH3?
A CH3CH2COO– + CH3NH3 +
B CH3CH2COOH + CH3NH3 +
C CH3CH2COOH + CH3NH2
D CH3CH2COO– + CH3NH2
Your answer
[1]

2. June 2025 · Paper 2 · Q18(a) · 4 marks ·

18 This question is about polymers.
The structures of 1-chlorobut-2-ene and 3-hydroxybutanoic acid are shown.
H CH3 O
C CH2 CH C
H3C C Cl HO CH2 OH
H
1-Chlorobut-2-ene 3-Hydroxybutanoic acid
(a) 1-Chlorobut-2-ene and 3-hydroxybutanoic acid can both form polymers.
Draw two repeat units of each of the polymers formed.
State the type of polymerisation reaction that takes place for each compound.
Two repeat units of polymer of 1-chlorobut-2-ene
Type of polymerisation ..........................................................................................................
Two repeat units of polymer of 3-hydroxybutanoic acid
Type of polymerisation ..........................................................................................................
[4]

3. June 2025 · Paper 2 · Q18(b)(ii) · 1 marks ·

(ii) The polymer formed from 3-hydroxybutanoic acid can be hydrolysed. This makes the polymer
biodegradable.
Suggest what feature in the structure of this polymer allows this hydrolysis.
..........................................................................................................................................................
..................................................................................................................................................... [1]

4. June 2024 · Paper 2 · Q12 · 1 marks ·

12 1,6-Diaminohexane, H2N(CH2)6NH2, reacts with hexanedioyl dichloride, Cl OC(CH2)4COCl to
form a polyamide and one other product.
What is the other product formed in this reaction?
A HCl
B H2O
C CO
D NH3
Your answer
[1]

5. June 2024 · Paper 2 · Q20(c) · 2 marks ·

(c) The repeat unit of a polyester is shown below.
O O
O O
Draw the structures of monomers required to form this polyester.
[2]

6. June 2024 · Paper 2 · Q20(d) · 4 marks ·

(d) The compound below contains an ester and an amide group.
O
N O
H
O
Draw the structures of the organic products formed by the complete alkaline hydrolysis of this
compound using NaOH(aq).
[4]

7. June 2024 · Paper 2 · Q22(a) · 3 marks ·

22 α-Amino acids have the general formula RCH(NH2)COOH.
The R group in an α-amino acid contains C and H only.
This R group has a molar mass of 91 g mol –1.
(a) A polymer is formed from 500 molecules of this α-amino acid.
Determine the molar mass of this polymer.
Give your answer to the nearest whole number.
molar mass of polymer = .............................................. g mol –1[3]

8. June 2024 · Paper 2 · Q22(b) · 3 marks ·

(b) The amino acid below can form addition and condensation polymers.
H H
C C O
H CH C
H2N OH
Draw 2 repeat units of these polymers.
Display the sections linking the monomers together.
addition polymer (2 repeat units)
condensation polymer (2 repeat units)
[3]

9. June 2023 · Paper 2 · Q20(b)(i) · 3 marks · AO1, 3

(b) PAS, shown below, is an antibiotic used to treat several diseases including tuberculosis (TB).
OH
H2N COOH
PAS
(i) A student predicts that PAS could polymerise to form a polymer containing both ester
and amide linkages.
Draw a section of this polymer.
The section should contain one amide and one ester linkage, which should be
displayed.
[3]

10. June 2023 · Paper 2 · Q21(c)(ii) · 4 marks · AO2

(ii) A student hydrolyses compound E with dilute hydrochloric acid, HCl (aq).
Draw the structures of the organic products formed by this hydrolysis.
[4]

11. June 2022 · Paper 2 · Q19(c)(ii) · 2 marks · AO1, 2

(ii) Butanedicarboxylic acid and 1,4-dihydroxy-2-methylbenzene react to form a
condensation polymer.
Draw one repeat unit of this condensation polymer.
[2]

12. June 2022 · Paper 2 · Q19(c)(iii) · 1 marks · AO3

(iii) Three repeat units of a condensation polymer are shown below.
O O O
O O O
O O O
O O O
Draw the structure of the monomer required to form this polymer.
[1]

13. June 2022 · Paper 2 · Q19(d)(i) · 1 marks · AO2

(d) A polymer is formed from 400 molecules of 2-aminopropanoic acid.
(i) Draw one repeat unit of this polymer.
[1]

14. June 2022 · Paper 2 · Q19(d)(ii) · 2 marks · AO2

(ii) What is the relative molecular mass, Mr, of the polymer?
Mr = ......................................................... [2]

15. November 2021 · Paper 2 · Q17(c) · 4 marks · AO1, 2

(c) A polymer can be made from the monomers:
• 1,4-diaminobutane
• benzene-1,4-diacyl dichloride.
Draw the structures of these monomers and one repeat unit of the polymer.
1,4-diaminobutane benzene-1,4-diacyl dichloride
one repeat unit of polymer
[4]

16. November 2020 · Paper 2 · Q18(b)(i) · 2 marks · AO1, 2

(b) HOOC(CH2)2COOH and HO(CH2)4OH react together to form polymer E.
(i) Draw one repeat unit of polymer E.
The functional groups should be clearly displayed.
[2]

17. November 2020 · Paper 2 · Q18(b)(ii) · 1 marks · AO3

(ii) Governments are encouraging the development of biodegradable polymers to reduce
dependency on persistent plastic waste derived from fossil fuels.
Polymer E is a biodegradable polymer.
Suggest why polymer E is able to biodegrade.
...........................................................................................................................................
...................................................................................................................................... [1]

18. November 2020 · Paper 2 · Q21(b)(ii) · 4 marks · AO2

(ii) A sample of aspartame is hydrolysed with aqueous acid.
Draw the structures of the three organic products of the complete acid hydrolysis of
aspartame.
[4]

19. June 2019 · Paper 2 · Q9 · 1 marks · AO2

9 The repeat unit of a polymer is shown below.
H H H H O
O C C O C C C C
H H O H H
Which monomers could form this polymer?
O
OH HO
A
HO OH
O
O
OH
HO OH
B
HO
O
O O
HO OH
C
HO OH
O O
D
HO
HO OH OH
Your answer
[1]

20. June 2019 · Paper 2 · Q18(d) · 2 marks · AO2

(d) A polyester is formed from 200 molecules of 4-hydroxybenzoic acid.
What is the relative molecular mass, Mr, of the polyester?
Mr = ............................................. g mol−1 [2]

21. June 2019 · Paper 2 · Q19(b)(i) · 3 marks · AO1, 2

(b) Benzene can be used as the starting material for the synthesis of compounds D and E, shown
below.
In the diagrams C6H5 is a phenyl group.
CH3
H H
C C H2N C COOH
C6H5 H
C6H5
compound D compound E
Compounds D and E can be converted into polymers.
(i) Draw two repeat units of these polymers.
Two repeat units of polymer formed from D
Two repeat units of polymer formed from E
[3]

22. June 2019 · Paper 2 · Q19(b)(ii) · 1 marks · AO1

(ii) State the type of polymer formed from compounds D and E.
From compound D ............................................................................................................
From compound E .............................................................................................................
[1]

23. June 2018 · Paper 2 · Q17(c) · 3 marks ·

(c) α-Amino acids can react to form proteins.
A short section of a protein chain is shown below.
HO
CH2 H O
CH N C
N C CH
H O CH2
CH2
C
H2N O
A student hydrolyses the protein with hot NaOH(aq).
Draw the structures of the organic products formed from this section of the protein.
[3]

24. June 2018 · Paper 2 · Q21(b) · 4 marks ·

(b) Compound H is used in the synthesis of polymer I, as shown in the flowchart below.
Complete the flowchart by drawing the structure of the acyl chloride and two repeat units of
polymer I, and stating the formula of the reagent(s) required for the first stage on the dotted
line.
O
C
OH
.........................
HO
compound H
acyl chloride
two repeat units of polymer I
[4]

25. June 2017 · Paper 2 · Q18(a)(iv) · 3 marks ·

(iv) Compound I is the monomer for the biodegradable polymer J.
Draw two repeat units of polymer J and suggest a reason why it is biodegradable.
...........................................................................................................................................
...........................................................................................................................................
...........................................................................................................................................
..................................................................................................................................... [3]

26. June 2017 · Paper 2 · Q18(b)(i) · 2 marks ·

(b) The repeat unit of Nylon 6,6 is shown below.
H
O
N
N
O H
Nylon 6,6
(i) Draw the structures of two monomers that can be used to form Nylon 6,6.
[2]

Mark schemes

1. June 2025 · Paper 2 · Q7

Mark scheme June 2025 Paper 2 Q7

2. June 2025 · Paper 2 · Q18(a)

Mark scheme June 2025 Paper 2 Q18(a)

3. June 2025 · Paper 2 · Q18(b)(ii)

Mark scheme June 2025 Paper 2 Q18(b)(ii)

4. June 2024 · Paper 2 · Q12

Mark scheme June 2024 Paper 2 Q12

5. June 2024 · Paper 2 · Q20(c)

Mark scheme June 2024 Paper 2 Q20(c)

6. June 2024 · Paper 2 · Q20(d)

Mark scheme June 2024 Paper 2 Q20(d)

7. June 2024 · Paper 2 · Q22(a)

Mark scheme June 2024 Paper 2 Q22(a)

8. June 2024 · Paper 2 · Q22(b)

Mark scheme June 2024 Paper 2 Q22(b)

9. June 2023 · Paper 2 · Q20(b)(i)

Mark scheme June 2023 Paper 2 Q20(b)(i)

10. June 2023 · Paper 2 · Q21(c)(ii)

Mark scheme June 2023 Paper 2 Q21(c)(ii)

11. June 2022 · Paper 2 · Q19(c)(ii)

Mark scheme June 2022 Paper 2 Q19(c)(ii)

12. June 2022 · Paper 2 · Q19(c)(iii)

Mark scheme June 2022 Paper 2 Q19(c)(iii)

13. June 2022 · Paper 2 · Q19(d)(i)

Mark scheme June 2022 Paper 2 Q19(d)(i)

14. June 2022 · Paper 2 · Q19(d)(ii)

Mark scheme June 2022 Paper 2 Q19(d)(ii)

15. November 2021 · Paper 2 · Q17(c)

Mark scheme November 2021 Paper 2 Q17(c)

16. November 2020 · Paper 2 · Q18(b)(i)

Mark scheme November 2020 Paper 2 Q18(b)(i)

17. November 2020 · Paper 2 · Q18(b)(ii)

Mark scheme November 2020 Paper 2 Q18(b)(ii)

18. November 2020 · Paper 2 · Q21(b)(ii)

Mark scheme November 2020 Paper 2 Q21(b)(ii)

19. June 2019 · Paper 2 · Q9

Mark scheme June 2019 Paper 2 Q9

20. June 2019 · Paper 2 · Q18(d)

Mark scheme June 2019 Paper 2 Q18(d)

21. June 2019 · Paper 2 · Q19(b)(i)

Mark scheme June 2019 Paper 2 Q19(b)(i)

22. June 2019 · Paper 2 · Q19(b)(ii)

Mark scheme June 2019 Paper 2 Q19(b)(ii)

23. June 2018 · Paper 2 · Q17(c)

Mark scheme June 2018 Paper 2 Q17(c)

24. June 2018 · Paper 2 · Q21(b)

Mark scheme June 2018 Paper 2 Q21(b)

25. June 2017 · Paper 2 · Q18(a)(iv)

Mark scheme June 2017 Paper 2 Q18(a)(iv)

26. June 2017 · Paper 2 · Q18(b)(i)

Mark scheme June 2017 Paper 2 Q18(b)(i)