What test/s could be used to differentiate saturated and unsaturated hydrocarbons?
The most commonly used one is the bromine test. The addition of bromine to the carbon-carbon double bond is very fast. The substitution that occurs with saturated hydrocarbons is very slow (and requires light and/or heat). The other test (the Baeyer test) involves the reaction of KMnO4 (purple) with alkenes to form diols and MnO2 (brown).
