Thats misinforming. It was not 4-MAR (4-methyl-aminorex)
what was taken from the market but Aminorex - the non-methylated
sister of 4-MAR a different compound. 4-MAR was never on the legal market.
So thats stupid anti-drug propaganda,
please inform yourself better in future before posting.
Methylation usually doesn't make for easier
and/or less neurotoxic metabolism does it? (but 4-MAR is rather safe though from
what I've read about it)
And hes not that wrong at all: aminorex
was taken from the pharmaceutical market after a couple of
unexpected heart strokes had occured in female patients receiving
MAR medication.
You maybe could've used the friendly way
and explained that with 4-MAR, the usual "methylation =
greater metabolic toxicity" scheme doesn't apply; and that
4-MAR is safer than MAR. But insulting him of doing "anti-drug
propaganda"? Nah, not really...
Edited
by - IndoleAmine on Feb 23 2005 01:14:16 AM
Below is a set of 3 text clippings that
relate to the idea that 4-MAR might be a dangerous and potentially
deadly substance.
The first one deals with it's non
methylated relative aminorex.
The second deals with its precursor
phenylpropanolamine (PPA) , which used to be OTC in the forms of
the Dexatrim diet aid and the cold remedy called Dimetap.
The third deals with a commonly referred
to death of a Florida man who's autopsy report showed some level of
4-MAR in his blood, among a few other substances of suspicion.
Imoberdorf, R. and Ballmer, P. E.,
"[Obesity: principles of drug therapy]," Ther Umsch, Vol.
57, No. 8, 2000, pp. 522-5.
Abstract: Obesity is a major global
public health problem. In many instances, a combination of diet
modification, increased physical activity and behavior therapy fail
or are insufficient for sustained weight loss. In these situations,
drug therapy may be helpful. However, drug treatment of obesity
resulted in unexpected devastating events in recent years. In the
late sixties, aminorex caused an epidemic of pulmonary hypertension
with high mortality rates. Dexfenfluramine and phentermine were
also associated with the development of pulmonary hypertension and
with alarming reports of cardiac valvular abnormalities. Therefore,
these drugs were withdrawn from the market. Newer drugs, like
sibutramine, a serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor, and
orlistat, a specific lipase inhibitor, reduce body weight
significantly compared to placebo. In combination with a
hypocaloric diet, weight loss of three to ten kilos can be
achieved. Pharmacotherapy is limited to patients with a body mass
index greater than 30 kg/m2, if non-pharmacological treatment
programs have failed. The drugs should be prescribed under strict
medical surveillance only.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
is taking steps to remove phenylpropanolamine (PPA) from all drug
products and has requested that all drug companies discontinue marketing
products containing PPA. In addition, FDA has issued a public
health advisory concerning phenylpropanolamine hydrochloride. This
drug is an ingredient used in many over-the-counter (OTC) and
prescription cough and cold medications as a decongestant and in
OTC weight loss products.
Scientists at Yale University School of
Medicine recently issued a report entitled
"Phenylpropanolamine & Risk of Hemorrhagic Stroke: Final
Report of the Hemorrhagic Stroke Project." This study reports
that taking PPA increases the risk of hemorrhagic stroke (bleeding
into the brain or into tissue surrounding the brain) in women. Men
may also be at risk. Although the risk of hemorrhagic stroke is
very low, FDA recommends that consumers not use any products that
contain PPA.
FDA’s Nonprescription Drugs Advisory
Committee recently discussed this study and other information on
phenylpropanolamine. The Committee determined that there is an
association between PPA and hemorrhagic stroke and recommended that
PPA not be considered safe for over-the-counter use.
3. The Commonly Referred to Death
Suspected to Have a Possible Link to 4-MAR
Case Report: A Fatality Involving UPPER.
Orlando Crime Laboratory. Gwen Love: Corner Drug Store.
Gainesville, FL Merck Index, Tenth Edition
In Defense of U4Euh
taken from a compilation of material
concerning 4-mar done by Rhodium at....
You have seen only the bad side of
U4Euh, so I can understand your yellow journalism. I can understand it,
but I do not forgive it. Yes, it is made from a "stimulant" and a
"poison." But common table salt is composed of sodium and
chlorine, both of which are poisonous.
Aminorex was withdrawn, at least in
Europe, because it caused degenerative pulmonary hypertension
after prolonged, daily use. Possibly due to the methyl group, we
have detected no similar tendency in U4Euh.
As for "amphetamine-like
effects," you could have used a neutral term like "alpha-adrenergic
effects," but NOOOooo...Doesn't every "stimulant" (another buzz word) produce
"Amphetamine-like effects?" What about caffeine? As for "hallucinogenic
effect" on "higher doses," how much higher? VERY MUCH higherÄENORMOUS
overdoses. Were the hallucinations caused by it, or by a lack of
sleep? The recommended amount is ten to twenty-five milligrams,
maximum of fifty milligrams, not more than once a week.
"...similar to PCP"Äanother buzz word.
Yes, I am bothered that people
misrepresent it. KNOW YOUR DEALER! "A small percentage of
users administer it intravenously." HOW small a percentage?
Obviously, if it was a large percentage, you'd include a number. A
"small percentage" of needle freaks will shoot anything
Only a small percentage shoot U4Euh because needle freaks prefer
the rush from speed. "nobody that (sic) can get meth likes
it." (anon.)
"The first...fatality" have
there been other deaths, or was that the ONLY one? Considering how much there may
be out there, only one fatality would tend to indicate its relative
safety. That fatality had reportedly been using it one or more
times every day for several months, and taking phenobarb to sleep.
He would gobble almost anything he could get his hands on.
"...a history of clandestine chemical
manufacturing"...ONE conviction..."cause of death to be a
drug overdose." A drug. What drug? Did U4Euh cause it, did
something else cause it, or was it the synergistic effect of
several substances? Exactly what did the autopsy show? That he
lived as long as did, despite such outrageous abuse of it, is proof
of its relative safety.
This is, of necessity, anonymous. To
paraphrase Miranda, anything you write can and damned well WILL be
used against you if the Pigs want to. I could send you copies of
the many favorable reports on U4Euh including the basic four-page
brochure if I have your assurance they will not be published and
will not fall into the hands of the Pigs. I am going to makewhat
you will consider an outrageous suggestion: the next time you get a
pure sample of it, try some. Only then will you know. Read the
comments about it in the Winter 1987 Whole Earth Review.
The title was clever, but how did it get
the name Ice? I KNOW how it got the name U4Euh. This is a photocopy,
made on a public machine, and was handled using gloves. The
envelope was sealed and the stamp applied using water, not
identifiable saliva.
You guys know why 4-mar was taken off the market as a weight loss
drug don't you?....does "exotic heart disease" ring a
bell?
Maybe you have your wires crossed a
little?
From memory, the weight loss drug
PPA(phenylpropanolamine) was taken off the market because of links
to increased hemorrhagic stroke (bleeding in brain).
Aminorex (not 4-methyl aminorex) was (i
think) never sold as a weightloss drug, (but was sold as some kind
of pharmaceutical preparation) was associated with right-side heart
failure. I think this is the 'exotic heart disease' to which you
refer.
I do not know if the issues
associated with Aminorex apply to 4-MAR, I have seen other people
assert that 4-MAR does not carrry the same dangerous side effect.
4-MAR Precursor & and reagents. -
Legality and relative lab safety.
Ok at this point in swims research on
this he's concluded that norephedrine and PPA are one and the same.
And that they can both be sourced somewhat easily by...
1) Homebrewing your own Via the amazing
brewers yeast fermentation of benzaldehyde trick.
2) If you happen to be an old dog with
incontinence in need of a prescription for something to help
contain your free flowing bladder.
All legit human uses of it seemed to
have now been stopped in the USA.
Lucky for swim he's got a good friend
who easily visually passes for a dog and honestly has no bladder
control so the veterinian bought it hook line and stinker on sight
alone.
The big questions now lie with the potassium
cyanate.
Those big questions are...
Is potassium cyanate a scheduled or
watched substance?
Are there any inherent dangers in
working with potassium cyanate and if so what are they and what
precautions must be taken to deal with them?
If I recall correctly from the Hive this
is a relatively safe reaction but am not entirely sure about that.
4-Mar - A Versatile Drug Trans-4-methylaminorex by Bandil
DOSE : 4-Methylaminorex (powder /
crystals)
BODY WEIGHT : 98 kg
Half an hour ago i just turned in my
exam in organic chemistry. Although i only was able to sleep less
than two hours the night before, i was more clearheaded than ever
and i finished the exam in record time. This is largely because of
the wonderfull substance 4-methylaminorex, which i prefer over all
other stimulants. It is a very versatile substance, which i will
describe in the following:
A little less than a year ago i was so
fortunate, that i gained access to unlimited amounts of
trans-4-methylaminorex (the more potent isomer) freebase. The first
few times i attemped to smoke it, but the smoke is to harsh for a
non smoker, which made me unable to hold it in and thus get
effects. All of my friends that have tried the smoking and oral
route agree that the oral route is the most pleasant method of
ingestion (effect wise), and thus i really don't care that my lungs
can't take it. I simply eat it in a gelcap.
There are several situations where 4-mar
is useful:
Parties: I prefer 40 mg's of the freebase orally
for a party dose. Many of my friends only need 20 for the same
effects so please don't do 40 straight away. 40 mg's makes me talk,
talk, talk, dance, dance, drink, drink, drink and generally puts me
in a PERFECT party mood. Not as pushy as meth. 4-mar people
generally don't just babble on and on like meth heads even though
people are annoyed. This is a very nice difference. I have once
taken about 50 mg's which made me feel like i was floating and was
extremely euphoric. It was way too much for a social setting, but
at raves and other places where you just generally 'groove' it's
appropriate.
Boring work: I always postpone boring tasks at work.
With a small dose(10 mg's) of 4-mar i do the work very systematic
and never skip any work. Work no matter what is enjoyable. The
dosage is so small that noone will notice that i'm affected.
Sleep deprivation: Just like today, there are times when
one gets to little sleep. Before 4-mar it was awful before an exam
for instance. But now it's no problem, 10-15 mg's clears the head
like no sleep could. It's totally clear for about 10 hrs before the
sleep sets in again. This substance is ideal for sleep deprivation.
The duration of the sleep deprivation effect is ideal for a whole
days work/study. No noticable tolerance is noted when done over a
48 hrs period. I have done this once, with three doses spaced 12
hrs each. The concentration doesn't go away as with meth over
extended periods.
Generally: In high doses it is often unbearably
euphoric, yet very subtle. Often it seems that the euphoria is
naturally induced (in the sense that there is not the 'drugged'
feeling of meth). It seems very easy on the body compared to many
other drugs. The euphoria usually doesn't kick in at doses under 20
mg's. The euphoria duration is around 6 hrs and 12 hrs for the
sleep deprivation effect. At high doses the drug can be felt as
long as 24 hrs after ingestion.
Another nice thing about 4-mar is that
it does not induce the 'i want more' symptom as meth. Meth users
crave more meth, whereas 4-mar satisfies the user after a single
dosage. Nor does it induce paranoia... Very nice ideed :)
If you have the chance to get 4-mar,
grab it! It's a very unique and nice drug.
SWIM really wants some 4-MAR now. Nobody even
knows what it is around these parts though. Ahh... If only
phenylpropanolamine was as common as it was a few years ago and
potassium cyanate was a smidgen easier to get. One can only dream
eh?
The fact that 4-MAR appears to bee like a
longer acting meth without all the weird and tweaky side effects
does make it seem rather attractive.
It's funny though when some people
actually seem to enjoy meth's tweakier qualities. I guess
those types of people would miss all the paranoia and sketchiness
that would bee missing from 4-MAR.
Well phenylpropanolamine is still available
in veterinary pharmacology. It's used to treat urinary tract
infections in dogs and cats. It's fairly easy to get (Rx required)
but it's price is quite high. I'm sure there's another (OTC) way to
4-MAR that's just waiting to be discovered ;).
Whatever it might be called it sure
looks interesting if one reads Bandils trip report from Erowid.
Particularly as applied to "productivity" types of
endeavors in which meth's usual "distracting" types of
side effects might be a hindrance.
Bandil also had written up a favorable
review of it as a "libido enhancer" at the Hive once I
beleive.
What was your opinion on it for that
purpose Boog?
Also, what elements of a typical
"meth high" might be missing from a 4-MAR experience?
Whatever it might be called it sure
looks interesting if one reads Bandils trip report from Erowid.
Particularly as applied to "productivity" types of
endeavors in which meth's usual "distracting" types of
side effects might be a hindrance.
Bandil also had written up a favorable
review of it as a "libido enhancer" at the Hive once I
beleive.
What was your opinion on it for that
purpose Boog?
Also, what elements of a typical
"meth high" might be missing from a 4-MAR experience?
Whatever it might be called it sure
looks interesting if one reads Bandils trip report from Erowid.
Particularly as applied to "productivity" types of
endeavors in which meth's usual "distracting" types of
side effects might be a hindrance.
Bandil also had written up a favorable
review of it as a "libido enhancer" at the Hive once I
beleive.
What was your opinion on it for that
purpose Boog?
Also, what elements of a typical
"meth high" might be missing from a 4-MAR experience?
We can't
forget about this post in the original thread either:
quote:
Nitroxamide
(Stranger)
10-30-03 12:19
No 467848
cyanate preparation
Cyanates are easy to prepare. Simply heat an alkali hydroxide with
urea.
NaOH + CO(NH2)2 ----> NaOCN + H2O + NH3
Plutonium is a necessary ingredient in the recipe for nirvana.
I know a few, including myself, have
been wondering how to make KOCN easily, well there you have it
folks. And of course urea is piss easy to make. *snickers at his pun*
This is a
thread from sciencemadness on getting urea from your own urine and
a bit of purification .
quote:
chemoleo
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posted on 11-8-2004 at 23:33 Reply With Quote
Isolation of urea from urine!
No, I am not kidding!
I have always been interested in the chemicals the body
produces/excretes, and urea is one of them!
Of course, urea is mostly easily available, but not everywhere. So
there are ways of obtaining it yourself, from a chemical
synthesiser called your own body
Urea is of course an ancient, well studied chemical, in fact it was
discovered over 230 years ago, and Friedrich Woehler determined
that urea could also be synthesised from inorganic chemicals, i.e.
by the reaction of potassium cyanate with ammonium sulfate (1828).
The original discovery of urea was by Hilaire Marin Rouelle in
1773, who obtained it by boiling urea dry and obtaining a white
residue (which later proved to be identical with Woehlers reaction
products - disproving the idea that the chemistry of the living is
radically different from inanimate matter)
Unfortunately, simply boiling down urine doesnt quite satisfy me,
as it still contains certain quantities of salt, creatine, ureic
acid, proteins etc.
Per day, about 1.5 - 2 litres are excreted, consisting of 95% of
water. The rest (in grams per day consists of)
# 25 g urea
# 1 g uric acid (metabolic endproduct of purines from DNA)
# 1.5 g creatinine (derived from creatine phosphate, the muscle
booster)
# 10 g of salts, mainly NaCl
# 3 g of phosphates, citric acid, oxalic acid,
# milligrams of proteins, and urochromen, which is the compound
giving rise to the yellow colour of urine.
Now, looking at this information, what could be the best way of
isolating urea from it?
I'd propose the following:
1. Collect urine for about a week, one should get about 10 litres.
Needless to say, urine is STERILE to start off with. Preferably
though, after each urine addition, the solution should be simply
boiled to keep it sterile. Otherwise, just literally pee into a
sterile pot with lid, and keep it at 4 deg C for the rest of the
week. I dont think bacterial contamination should be a problem then
(unless your have a medical condition, where bacteria are excreted
through your urinary tracts)
2. AFter a week, boil down the urine, until a solid mass is
obtained (from the above table, it should way about 300 grams. Do
this outside, unless you want 10 litres of water condensing on your
windows
3. That's when things become interesting. You want to get rid of
salts (primarily), and phosphates. At this point there is no easy
way to get rid of the creatinine, and the ureic acid. Proteins
aren't much to worry about anyway, as conc. are very low.
So - I checked - urea is soluble in ethanol, at 50 g / l, @ 20 degC
. Probably a lot more is soluble at higher temperatures. In water,
it dissolves at >1500 g/litre, so very highly soluble. I'd try
to dissolve the urine residue in an excess of cheap industrial
ethanol (doesnt matter if it contains other things), which would
mean, around 3 litres, if you heat the ethanol up a little (no open
flames ok). All the inorganic stuff (salts etc) are barely soluble
in ehtanol, so they should remain precipitated.
4. Filter off the remainder, and boil of the ethanolic solution of
urea (with a small amount of creatinine potentially) down to a few
hundred ml's, or even to dryness. If you distill, you can obviously
recycle the ethanol, although it may prove to be a pain to recycle
such large amounts, considering that ethanol is cheap anyhow.
5. Alternatively, once you boiled down the ethanolic solution of
urea to a few hundred ml, you could add HCl (conc) or H2SO4, and
precipitate urea as the respective salt (which is surely insoluble
in ethanol). The salt can be turned back into urea with the
appropriate amount of NaOH.
What do you think? Sure this is a very simple way of purifying
urea, and of course if you had all the reagents, one could get extremely
high purities.
At least, this way, one gets about 200 g of urea, straight from
urine, with the only expense of 3 litres of industrial ethanol.
NOt to bad, huh?
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posted on 12-8-2004 at 01:13 Reply With Quote
I'm pretty sure that the "established" method of
isolating urea from urine is to boil down the urine to concentrate
the solution, then add nitric acid. Urea nitrate is relatively
insoluble and precipitates. I think Megalomania's chem lab had a
more exact procedure for this. Then you can take that small amount
of solid and treat it with NaOH and ethanol to get the urea back.
I like this method because it should sharply separate urea from
not-urea, and may require less energy (less forced evaporation).
Urea oxalate is also fairly insoluble and can be precipitated from
an aqueous solution containing urea.
Edit: sodium oxalate is isn't very soluble either, so I suppose
HNO3 is the way to go.
[Edited on 8-12-2004 by Polverone]
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posted on 12-8-2004 at 15:06 Reply With Quote
I know this forum advocates mad science, but isn't collecting urine
going a bit too far? Amateur chemistry is a hard enough hobby to justify
already, without having jars of urine to explain.
Then again, there are worse things you can do with it...
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posted on 12-8-2004 at 16:18 Reply With Quote
To be honest, I don't think it goes too far at all.
Let me remind you that many diseases are diagnosed by analysing
urine. Which means the person concerned has to fill a cup with it,
and pass it on to the laboratory, who analyses it down to the last
molecule. People are handling it every day and don't complain it
goes to far. Oh, you may argue they do it because it's necessary,
while purifying urea from urine isn't. Is that how you define
'going too far', however? Whether something is necessary or not?
By the way, in practical biochemistry classes, we analysed our very
own urine for vitamin C content - which wasn't strictly necessary -
and yet noone complained doing it.
Also, let me remind you that in biochemistry, urine is routinely
used to purify certain enzymes. In fact, I worked with enzymes directly
isolated from my own urine. So what? It's natural, and by no means
sick, disgusting or dirty. Your blood is equally dirty (indeed your
lymph fluids consist of less concentrated urinal fluids).
How is it different to isolate urea from urine, or glycogen from
liver, cysteine from wool, or oxalic acid from rhubarb? The only
difference that these are excretions - but it's still as natural or
unnatural as anything else. What's the big deal?
Hmm - am I lacking perspective or something?
I thought that the idea/philosophy behind this, in essence, is no
different to a lot of other chemical problems/purifications - if
you ignore this totally unreasonable 'disgust' factor - totally
unreasonable because urine is sterile, contains about 200
compounds, und doesnt even smell, unlike pancreatic enzymes / bile
and such - which have been analysed to death just as well.
Again - where's the big deal? And what's this to do with the link
?(pee drinking - what the hell)
[Edited on 12-8-2004 by chemoleo]
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posted on 12-8-2004 at 22:37 Reply With Quote
I'd just like to say, urea is NOT inherently sterile even in
healthy people. First of all, it is not that unusual for a few
bacteria to be present in the bladder (although these are generally
transient - if they colonise, you get an infection).
Secondly, urine is typically contaminated as it leaves the body, as
bacteria are relatively common in the urethra, certainly towards
the end.
That's why when you give a urine sample for disease testing the
doctor will ask for a "mid-stream" sample - you will pee
about a third of the contents of your bladder, stop, stick the cup
under there, fill the cup and then finish off. THe first third is
designed to (hopefully) wash away any transient bacteria.
Diagnosis of urinary tract infections is actually a statistical
thing - if you detect a single live bacterium in the blood, for
example, it is immediately considered an infection. But because of
the relatively common contamination of urine, you have to have more
than a cecrtain threshold level present in the sample to be
considered an infection.
Thought somone might like to know this... trust me, nobody needs to
work with semi=fermented urine samples (it's FAR from pleasant!!)
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posted on 12-8-2004 at 22:57 Reply With Quote
Of course, semi-fermented urine samples aren't pleasant. That's why
I suggested boiling them.
But then, is the smell of ammonia pleasant? Surely not. Except, in
the former case, ammonia is produced bacterially...
Anyway - the debate is not so much about the issue whether it's
sterile or not (and I agree about your mid-stream sample), but
simply whether this particular case is 'science that goes too far'.
And I just happened to disagree on that - if anything, I'd say, the
making of highly toxic nerve gases is science that goes to far, at
least for the amateur chemist!
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posted on 13-8-2004 at 01:02 Reply With Quote
Actually, I found the link somewhat interesting, although it failed
to substantiate most of its positive claims. For example, I've
always been taught that ingesting urine is counterproductive in
preventing dehydration. They even intimate that "urine
therapy" can be usefull in treating gout, a disease caused by
excessive levels of uric acid!
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posted on 13-8-2004 at 01:04 Reply With Quote
US5659080 from the E&W archives:
In a 100 ml beaker was placed a solution of 50 grams of 33% diluted
nitric acid, and to this solution was added 14 grams of urea in
small portions while stirring vigorously. For this period of time,
since the temperature does not show any rise practically, this
reaction can be carried out in room temperature and is not
necessary to be kept cool. Immediately urea nitrate resulted as
crystals. Having been allowed to stand for 10 minutes, the mixture
was filtered to collect the crystals. This crystals were washed
with a little amount of water to remove the solution well and were
then dried in a desiccator under vacuum. The yield resulted in 23.8
grams of urea nitrate (97% yield), whose melting point was measured
to be 162.degree. C.
Urea and uric acid extraction from urine was good enough for
Wieland's revision of Gattermann. It was isolated using colorless
70% HNO3. All the other old refs use the conc. acid as well. And
all use BaCO3, K2CO3, or KHCO3 to give the metal nitrate.
The oxalate was made with hot satd soln of oxalic acid and syrupy
urine. Like the nitrate it is not very soluble in excess of the
acid. The oxalate is decomposed with CaCO3 suspension. This has the
advantage of forming insoluble Ca oxalate, and the aqueous solution
is filtered and evaporated.
Decolorizing was done with charcoal or boiling H2O2.
Cyanates are relatively nontoxic and
currently unlisted. I have no idea how watched they might be.
Urea is available pure and OTC as the
pellets in instant chemical cold packs. Ammonium nitrate is more
common than urea in this application, but the urea ones are out
there too. A web search would produce some brand names for you.
It's also available (mostly) pure as a fertilizer.
Cyanates can be prepared from cyanuric
acid (OTC as pool chlorine stabilizer) according to GB710143. Quick
summary of the patent: powdered alkali carbonates are mixed with
powdered cyanuric acid and heated to about 520 C. If this is done
in a carbon dioxide atmosphere, there is no detectable amount of
cyanide formed. The reaction is carried out in a closed steel
vessel at atmospheric pressure. Only about 2/3 of the
stoichiometric amount of alkali carbonate should be used. If more
carbonate is used, some remains unconverted to cyanate. If less is
used, some ammonium carbonate and other products form.
Here's a recommended prep of potassium
cyanate. It uses KHCO3 instead of K2CO3 because the deliquescent
K2CO3 impedes thorough mixing.
Powder in a mortar 16 g (1.3 mol) dry
urea crystals. Add in portions 20 g (1 mol) KHCO3, and mix as
intimately as possible with the powdered urea. Transfer the mixture
to a porcelain baisin which is then heated with a free flame, the
temperature being gradually raised until the contents of the basin
are just fused. A brisk effervescence then develops, but after only
a short duration rather abruptly ceases. This crude cyanate is quite
likely good enough for many uses. But if you're a perfectionist...
The clear melt is now tested for absence
of carbonate: remove a drop on the end of a glass rod, allow it to
solidify, and dissolve it in 2-3 ml of water. Add aqueous BaCl2; if
no precipitate forms in a few minutes, the melt is carbonate-free.
If carbonate is still present, add 0.2-0.5 g of urea to the melt.
After the melt tests negative for
carbonate, heat is removed and the basin is swirled as it cools so
that the cyanate forms a thin layer which spontaneously separates
from the basin as it cools. The crude cyanate (15.3 g) is powdered,
mixed with its own weight of water, rendered alkaline with a few
drops of aqueous K2CO3, and all carefully heated to 50 C while
being briskly stirred. When only a small amount of solid remains
undissolved, the solution is quickly filtered by suction. 50 ml of
95% ethanol is added to the solution, and the mixture cooled by
ice. The separated crystals of cyanate are filtered by suction,
washed with ethanol, and dried in vacuo. Yield of recrystallized
salt, 10 g.
Uncle Fester says somewhere in SOMM that
PPA can be made from benzaldehyde and alanine simply by heating the
two together until CO2 evolution ceases. Hmmm. Cinnamon oil ->
benzaldehyde, benzaldehyde -> PPA, PPA -> 4-MAR. OTC, and so
simple that even pill-cooks might be able to do it. Is this the
Next Big Drug Problem just waiting to happen?
