Washing of crystals

In industrial practice, the major cause of impurities in the product is frequently incomplete separation and washing of crystals that leaves significant amounts of impure mother liquid with the crystalline phase (Cm/). This appears especially true in crude or first-step separations. The mechanical separation of crystalline materials from the liquid phase is beyond the scope of this chapter, but the optimization of this step should not be overlooked in these cases. As the purity of the crystals increase (to over 99.9%), other mechanisms actually become more dominant, and the emphasis shifts to the challenge of minimizing the other modes described by Eq. (3.9), as discussed in the following sections. 

Filter the product at the pump, using an alkali-resisting filter-paper, or a sintered glass filter-funnel. Wash the crystals on the filter with a small quantity of ethanol to remove the purple colour, and then drain thoroughly. 

To obtain the free acid, dissolve the potassium salt in 50 ml. of cold water, filter the solution if a small undissolved residue remains, and then boil the clear solution gently whilst dilute sulphuric acid is added until the separation of the acid is complete. Cool the solution and filter off the pale orange-coloured crystals of the benzilic acid wash the crystals on the filter with some hot distilled water, drain well, and then dry in a desiccator. Yield of crude acid, 4 g. Recrystallise from benzene (about 50 ml.) to which a small quantity of animal charcoal has been added, filtering the boiling solution through a preheated funnel fitted w ith a fluted filter-paper, as the benzilic acid readily crystallises as the solution cools alternatively, recrystallise from much hot water. The benzilic acid is obtained as colourless crystals, m.p. 150°. 

The apparatus depicted in Fig. 11,34, 1, intended for advanced students, may be used for the filtration of a small quantity of crystals suspended in a solvent either a Hirsch funnel or a glass funnel with Witt filter plate is employed. The mixture of crystals and mother liquor is filtered as usual through the funnel with suction. Rotation of the three-way tap wifi allow air to enter the filter cylinder, thus permitting the mother liquor to be drawn oflF by opening the lower tap. The mother liquor can then be applied for rinsing out the residual crystals in the vessel, and the mixture is again filtered into the cylinder. When all the crystals have been transferred to the funnel and thoroughly drained, the mother liquor may be transferred to another vessel the crystals may then be washed as already described (Section 11,32). 

Into a 1500 ml. round-bottomed flask place 97-5 g. of finely-powdered sodium cyanide (1), 125 ml. of water, and a few chips of porous porcelain. Attach a reflux condenser and warm on a water bath until all the sodium cyanide dissolves. Introduce a solution of 250 g. (196 ml.) of n-butyl bromide (Sections 111,35 and 111,37) in 290 ml. of pure methyl alcohol, and reflux gently on a water bath for 28-30 hours. Cool to room temperature and remove the sodium bromide which has separated by filtration through a sintered glass funnel at the pump wash the crystals with about 100 ml. of methyl alcohol. Transfer the filtrate and washings to From n caproamide by SOClj method. 

Dissolve 57 g. of dry malonic acid in 92 5 ml. of dry P3rridine contained in a 500 ml. round-bottomed flask, cool the solution in ice, and add 57 g. (70 ml.) of freshly distilled n-heptaldehyde (oenanthol) with stirring or vigorous shaking. After a part of the aldehyde has been added, the mixture rapidly seta to a mass of crystals. Insert a cotton wool (or calcium chloride) tube into the mouth of the flask and allow the mixture to stand at room temperature for 60 hours with frequent shaking. Finally, warm the mixture on a water bath until the evolution of carbon dioxide ceases (about 8 hours) and then pour into an equal volume of water. Separate the oily layer and shake it with 150 ml. of 25 per cent hydrochloric acid to remove pyridine. Dissolve the product in benzene, wash with water, dry with anhydrous magnesium sulphate, and distil under reduced pressure. Collect the ap-nonenoic acid at 130-13272 mm. The yield is 62 g. 

An alternative procedure is to leave the syrupy residue in a vacuum desiccator over anhydrous calcium chloride and siUca gel, and to Alter ofl the successive Crops of crystals as they separate. These are washed with light petroleum, b.p. 40-60°, spread on a porous tile and recrystallised. 

The partially hydrolysed product may be purified by recrystallisation from one-tliird its weight of pure benzene containing 10-20 per cent, of acetyl chloride, and washing the crystals with light petroleum (b.p. 60-80°) to which a little acetyl chloride has been added. 

Mix 42 5 g. of acetone cyanohydrin (Section 111,75) and 75 g. of freshly powdered ammonium carbonate in a small beaker, warm the mixture on a water bath FUME CUPBOARD) and stir with a thermometer. Gentle action commences at 50° and continues during about 3 hours at 70-80°. To complete the reaction, raise the temperature to 90° and maintain it at this point until the mixture is quiescent (ca. 30 minutes). The colourless (or pale yellow) residue solidifies on coohng. Dissolve it in 60 ml. of hot water, digest with a little decolourising carbon, and filter rapidly through a pre-heated Buchner funnel. Evaporate the filtrate on a hot plate until crystals appear on the surface of the liquid, and then cool in ice. Filter off the white crystals with suction, drain well, and then wash twice with 4 ml. portions of ether this crop of crystals of dimethylhydantoin is almost pure and melts at 176°. Concentrate the mother liquor to the crj staUisation point, cool in ice, and collect the... 

Atophan. In a 1 litre round-bottomed flask, equipped with a reflux condenser, place 25 g. (24 ml.) of purified benzaldehyde (Section IV,115), 22 g. of freshly-distilled P3 ruvic acid and 200 ml. of absolute ethyl alcohol. Heat the mixture to tlie boiling point on a water bath and add slowly, with frequent shaking, a solution of 23 g. (22 -5 ml.) of pure aniline in 100 ml. of absolute ethyl alcohol. The addition usually occupies about 1 hour. Reflux the mixture on a water bath for 3 hours, and allow to stand overnight. Filter off the crude atophan (1) at the pump and wash the crystals with a little ether. Recrystallise from ethyl alcohol (about 20 ml. per gram). The yield of pure 2-phenvlquinoUne-4-carboxvUc acid, m.p. 210°, is 30 g. 

In a flask the chemist mixes 50g piperonal into 200mL glacial acetic acid, then adds 45mL nitroethane and 17g ammonium acetate. The solution is then refluxed 4 hours and takes on the color of yellow to yellow-orange. After 4 hours and cooling, yellowish crystals of p-nitropropene will spontaneously form. If not, the solution can be diluted with 50ml of dHjO and chilled in an ice bath for an hour to form the crystals with some slushy glacial acetic acid and water intermixed. The mass of crystals is broken up and plopped into a Buchner funnel to be vacuum filtered. The filter cake is washed with a little extra acetic acid or water. All of the filtrate is saved. 

The way the chemist knows that she has methylamine and not ammonium chloride is that she compares the look of the two types of crystals. Ammonium chloride crystals that come from this reaction are white, tiny and fuzzy. The methylamine hydrochloride crystals are longer, more crystalline in nature and are a lot more sparkly. The chemist leaves the methylamine crystals in the Buchner funnel of the vacuum filtration apparatus and returns the filtrate to the distillation set up so it can be reduced one last time to afford a second crop. The combined methylamine hydrochloride filter cake is washed with a little chloroform, scraped into a beaker of hot ethanol and chilled. The methylamine hydrochloride that recrystallizes in the cold ethanol is vacuum filtered to afford clean, happy product (yield=50%). 

Transfer the filtrate to a ceramic evaporating dish and heat on a water bath until a crystalline scum forms on the top. Cool the dish quickly then filter the mess on the vacuum Buchner to yield 96g of Methylamine Hydrochloride. Concentrate the filtrate once again to obtain a second crop of crystals, -IQg. Concentrate the filtrate a third time as far as possible using the water bath, then store the dish in a vacuum dessicator loaded with Sodium Hydroxide in the bottom for 24 hours. Add Chloroform to the residue left in the crucible to dissolve out Dimethylamine Hydrochloride (distill off the Chloroform to recover - good stuff) then filter on the venerable old vacuum Buchner funnel to yield an additional 20g of Methylamine Hydrochloride, washing the crystals in the funnel with a small poiiion of Chloroform ( 10mL). 

Naphthalenol. 2-Naphthol or p-naphthol or 2-hydroxynaphthalene/7i3 -/5 -i7 melts at 122°C and boils at 295°C, and forms colorless crystals of characteristic, phenoHc odor which darken on exposure to air or light. 2-Naphthol [135-19-3] is manufactured by fusion of sodium 2-naphthalenesulfonate with sodium hydroxide at ca 325°C, acidification of the drowned fusion mass which is quenched ia water, isolation and water-washing of the 2-naphthalenol, and vacuum distillation and flaking of the product. A continuous process of this type has been patented (69). The high sulfate content ia the primary effluent from 2-naphthol production is greatiy reduced ia modem production plants by the recovery of sodium sulfate. 

A suspension of crystals formed from the melt may be contacted by weU-mixed mother Hquor or the crystals may be moved countercurrently to hquor flow ia a vertical or horizontal column. In column crystallizers, crystals are moved ia a specific direction by gravity or rotating blades. The crystals are melted by the addition of heat when they reach a designated end of the crystallizer a portion of the melt is removed as product and the remainder is returned to the system to flow countercurrently to and to wash the product crystals. 

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