Sodium ketones

Claisen condensation Condensation of an ester with another ester, a ketone or a nitrile in the presence of sodium ethoxide, sodium or sodamidc, with the elimination of an alcohol. The result is the formation of a / -ketonic ester, ketone, or nitrile respectively, e.g. 

Claisen reaction Condensation of an aldehyde with another aldehyde or a ketone in the presence of sodium hydroxide with the elimination of water. Thus benzaldehyde and methanal give cinnamic aldehyde, PhCH CH-CHO. 

C HgNjOjS. Colourless needles, with iH20. Prepared by reducing diazotized sulphanilic acid with an excess of sodium sulphite. It is a typical hydrazine in its reactions with ketones, and with acetoacetic ester. The latter reaction gives rise to the tartrazine dyestuffs, and is much used commercially. 

SchifT s bases A -Arylimides, Ar-N = CR2, prepared by reaction of aromatic amines with aliphatic or aromatic aldehydes and ketones. They are crystalline, weakly basic compounds which give hydrochlorides in non-aqueous solvents. With dilute aqueous acids the parent amine and carbonyl compounds are regenerated. Reduction with sodium and alcohol gives... 

Since hydroxylamine is usually available only in the form of its salts, e.g., the hydrochloride or sulphate, the aqueous solution of these salts is treated with sodium acetate or hydroxide to liberate the base before treatment with the aldehyde or ketone. Most oximes are weakly amphoteric in character, and may dissolve in aqueous sodium hydroxide as the sodium salt, from which they can be liberated by the addition of a weak acid, e.g., acetic acid. 

Sodium me/aperiodate (NalO ) in cold aqueous solution readily oxidises 1,2-diols with splitting of the molecule and the consequent formation of aldehydes or ketones thus ethylene glycol gives formaldehyde and pinacol gives acetone. In the case of a 1,2,3-triol, the central carbon atom of the triol... 

Place 80 g, of hydroxylamine sulphate (or 68-5 g. of the hydrochloride), 25 g. of hydrated sodium acetate, and 100 ml. of water in a 500 ml. flask fitted with a stirrer and a reflux water-condenser, and heat the stirred solution to 55-60°. Run in 35 g (42 nil,) of -hexyl methyl ketone, and continue the heating and vigorous stirring for ij hours. (The mixture can conveniently be set aside overnight after this stage.) Extract the oily oxime from the cold mixture twice with ether. Wash the united ethereal extract once with a small quantity of water, and dry it with sodium sulphate. Then distil off the ether from the filtered extract, preferably using a distillation flask of type shown in Fig. 41 (p. 65) and of ca, 50 ml, capacity, the extract being run in as fast as the ether distils, and then fractionally distil the oxime at water-pump pressure. Collect the liquid ketoxime, b.p. 110-111713 mm. Yield, 30-32 g. 

This Reaction should be carefully distinguished from the Claisen Conden-tation, which is the condensation of an ester, under the influence of sodium ethoxide, with (i) another ester, (ii) a ketone, or (iii) a nitrile, with the elimination of alcohol. For details of this condensation, see Ethyl Acetoacetate, p. 264. 

The student should note that ketones in class (1), t.c., those having the >CO group in the side chain, will form additive compounds with sodium bisulphite only if this >CO group is not directly joined to the benzene ring acetophenone therefore will not form such compounds, whereas benzyl methyl ketone, CaHsCHjCOCH, will do so. Many quinones, particularly ortho quinones such as phenanthraquinone, form additive compounds with sodium bisulphite. 

Aldehydes and ketones may frequently be identified by their semicarbazones, obtained by direct condensation with semicarbazide (or amino-urea), NH,NHCONH a compound which is a monacidic base and usually available as its monohydrochloride, NHjCONHNH, HCl. Semicarbazones are particularly useful for identification of con jounds (such as acetophenone) of which the oxime is too soluble to be readily isolated and the phenylhydrazone is unstable moreover, the high nitrogen content of semicarbazones enables very small quantities to be accurately analysed and so identified. The general conditions for the formation of semicarbazones are very similar to those for oximes and phenylhydrazones (pp. 93, 229) the free base must of course be liberated from its salts by the addition of sodium acetate. 

Sulphuric add test. Heat 0 5 g. of citric acid or a citrate with 1 ml. of H2SO4 CO and COg are evolved and the mixture turns yellow, but does not char. Acetone dicarboxylic acid, OC(CH2COOH)g, is also formed, and is tested for after heating the mixture for 1 minute cool, add a few ml. of water and make alkaline with NaOH solution. Add a few ml. of a freshly prepared solution of sodium nitroprusside and note the intense red coloration (see Test 4 a) for ketones, p. 346). 

Metallic sodium. This metal is employed for the drying of ethers and of saturated and aromatic hydrocarbons. The bulk of the water should first be removed from the liquid or solution by a preliminary drying with anhydrous calcium chloride or magnesium sulphate. Sodium is most effective in the form of fine wire, which is forced directly into the liquid by means of a sodium press (see under Ether, Section II,47,i) a large surface is thus presented to the liquid. It cannot be used for any compound with which it reacts or which is affected by alkalis or is easily subject to reduction (due to the hydrogen evolved during the dehydration), viz., alcohols, acids, esters, organic halides, ketones, aldehydes, and some amines. 

Ketones Anhydrous sodium, magnesium or calcium sulphate anhydrous potassium carbonate. 

Aliphatic hydrocarbons can be prepared by the reduction of the readily accessible ketones with amalgamated zinc and concentrated hydrochloric acid (Clemmensen method of reduction). This procedure is particularly valuable for the prep>aration of hydrocarbons wdth an odd number of carbon atoms where the Wurtz reaction cannot be applied with the higher hydrocarbons some secondary alcohol is produced, which must be removed by repeated distillation from sodium. 

Reduction of ketones either with sodium and absolute alcohol, example ... 

Use the apparatus detailed in Section 111,20. Dissolve 100 g. (123 ml.) of methyl n-butyl ketone (2-hexanone) (Section 111,152) in 750 ml. of ether and add 150 ml. of water. Introduce 69 g. of clean sodium in the form of wire (or small pieces) as rapidly as possible the reaction must be kept under control and, if necessary, the flask must be cooled in ice or in running water. When all the sodium has reacted, separate the ethereal layer, wash it with 25 ml. of dilute hydrochloric acid (1 1), then with water, dry with anhydrous potassium carbonate or with anhydrous calcium sulphate, and distil through a fractionating column. Collect the fraction of b.p. 136-138°. The yield of methyl n-butyl carbinol (2-hexanol) is 97 g. 

The reaction with sodium is by no means an infallible practical test for alcohols since, strictly speaking, it is applicable only to pure anhydrous liquids. Traces of water, present as impurities, would give an initial evolution of hydrogen, but reaction would stop after a time if an alcohol is absent furthermore, certain esters and ketones also evolve hydrogen when treated with sodium (compare Section XI,7,6). It may, however, be assumed that if no hydrogen is evolved in the test, the substance is not an alcohol. 

Acetals are usually liquid they are almost unaffected by alkalis and are not attacked by metallic sodium nor by Fehling s solution. They are identified by reference to the alcohol and aldehyde (or ketone if a ketal) which they yield when hydrolysed in acid solution. Hydrolysis proceeds readily in dilute acid solution e.g., with 3-5 per cent, acid). ... 

Methyl ethyl ketone. Use the apparatus of Fig. Ill, 61, 1 but with a 500 ml. round-bottomed flask. Place 40 g. (50 ml.) of see. butyl alcohol, 100 ml. of water and a few fragments of porous porcelain in the flask. Dissolve 100 g. of sodium dichromate dihydrate in 125 ml. of water in a beaker and add very slowly and with constant sturing 80 ml. of concentrated sulphuric acid allow to cool, and transfer the resulting solution to the dropping funnel. Heat the flask on a wire gauze or in an air bath until the alcohol mixture commences to boil. Remove the flame and run in the dichromate solution slowly and at such a rate that the temperature... 

An alternative method of working up the distillate, which has its advantages when dealing with volatile ketones or when it is suspected that conversion into the ketone is incomplete, is to treat the combined ketones with sodium hydroxide pellets until the mixture is alkaline. Should solids separate, these may be dissolved by the addition of a little water. The ketone is then separated, dried over anhydrous potassium carbonate, and fractionated. 

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