The product (Z) of the following reaction is

CONCEPT:

Friedel-Crafts Alkylation Reaction

• The Friedel-Crafts alkylation is an electrophilic aromatic substitution reaction in which an alkyl group is added to an aromatic ring using an alkyl halide (like CH3Cl) and a Lewis acid catalyst (like AlCl3).
• In this reaction, the alkyl halide (CH3Cl) reacts with the aromatic compound (benzene) in the presence of anhydrous AlCl3 to form a methylated product (toluene, C6H5CH3) and HCl as a byproduct.

EXPLANATION:

• In the given reaction:

  C6H6 (benzene) + CH3Cl (methyl chloride) → C6H5CH3 (toluene) + HCl

• The Lewis acid AlCl3 activates the methyl chloride (CH3Cl) by accepting a lone pair of electrons from the chlorine atom, which creates a methyl carbocation (CH3+), a highly reactive species.
• The methyl carbocation (CH3+) then attacks the electron-rich benzene ring, resulting in the substitution of a hydrogen atom with a methyl group to form toluene (C6H5CH3).
• The byproduct of this reaction is hydrochloric acid (HCl), which is released during the reaction.
• The reaction follows the mechanism of electrophilic aromatic substitution.

Therefore, the product (Z) of the reaction is Toluene (C6H5CH3).