The Wurtz reaction is primarily used for the synthesis of symmetrical alkanes,which contain an even number of carbon atoms. In this reaction,two molecules of an alkyl halide react with $2Na$ in the presence of dry ether to form an alkane with double the number of carbon atoms.
Example: $CH_3-Br + 2Na + Br-CH_3 \xrightarrow{\text{Dry ether}} CH_3-CH_3 + 2NaBr$
It is not preferred for preparing alkanes with an odd number of carbon atoms because using two different alkyl halides (e.g.,$R-X$ and $R'-X$) results in a mixture of three different alkanes ($R-R$,$R'-R'$,and $R-R'$). Since these alkanes have similar boiling points,it is extremely difficult to separate them by fractional distillation.
For example,the reaction of $CH_3-I$ and $CH_3CH_2-I$ produces a mixture:
$CH_3-I + 2Na + I-CH_2CH_3 \xrightarrow{\text{Dry ether}} CH_3-CH_2CH_3 + 2NaI$
$CH_3-I + 2Na + I-CH_3 \xrightarrow{\text{Dry ether}} CH_3-CH_3 + 2NaI$
$CH_3CH_2-I + 2Na + I-CH_2CH_3 \xrightarrow{\text{Dry ether}} CH_3CH_2-CH_2CH_3 + 2NaI$