Carboxylic acids react with two equivalents of organolytic followed by aqueous hydrolysis to form ketones.
![organometallic-carboxylic-acids acidos-carboxilicos-organometalicos](/images/stories/organica-ii/acidos-carboxilicos/organometalicos/acidos-carboxilicos-organometalicos-01.png)
The reaction requires two equivalents of organolytic, the first deprotonates the acid group, while the second equivalent adds as a nucleophile to the carboxylic group.
The mechanism of the reaction occurs with the following stages:
Stage 1 . deprotonation of carboxylic acid
![organometallic-carboxylic-acids acidos-carboxilicos-organometalicos](/images/stories/organica-ii/acidos-carboxilicos/organometalicos/acidos-carboxilicos-organometalicos-02.png)
Stage 2 . Nucleophilic attack of the organometallic to the carboxylic group
![organometallic-carboxylic-acids acidos-carboxilicos-organometalicos](/images/stories/organica-ii/acidos-carboxilicos/organometalicos/acidos-carboxilicos-organometalicos-03.png)
Stage 3. Formation of the hydrate by hydrolysis of the salt
![organometallic-carboxylic-acids acidos-carboxilicos-organometalicos](/images/stories/organica-ii/acidos-carboxilicos/organometalicos/acidos-carboxilicos-organometalicos-04.png)
Stage 4. Conversion of the hydrate to ketone by loss of water.
![organometallic-carboxylic-acids acidos-carboxilicos-organometalicos](/images/stories/organica-ii/acidos-carboxilicos/organometalicos/acidos-carboxilicos-organometalicos-05.png)