URGENT - Recrystallisation of cocaine

Misterwize · Mon Aug 22, 2005 1:59 pm

Right guys I need some quick answers.

I am doing and A/B and recrystallisation on some good quality Coke HCl, turning it into freebase using ammonia, dissolving in ether, filtering, and then adding a mixture of dry acetone/ 36% HCL liquid and then refiltering to yield Purer Coke HCl. Further acetone wash on the crystals, reserving the liquid and addition of more HCl drop by drop until no more crystals precipitate?

Acetone and ether to be dried by oven dehydrated MgSO4 crystals.

I have a few questions and need an answers quickly please,

1.) Does the above method sound suitable?

2.) Will chilling the Acetone make a difference and make more crystals fall out on the second run?

3.) Is 36% HCl strong enough for this?

4.) If water in the acetone makes my crystals into a sticky mess what can I do to sort it out?

5.) How much MgSO4 crystals should I use?

6.) Can the HCl acid also be dried by using the MgSO4?

Anyone with any ideas or experience I am interested in hearing if anyone has done this and what the results were like?

Cheers

Mw

fcknut · Mon Aug 22, 2005 6:13 pm

Have absolutely no experience with this procedure but...here's my 2 cents anyway Wink

1.) Does the above method sound suitable?

not sure about drying acetone with mag. sulfate... don't think this would work... could well be wrong there though

2.) Will chilling the Acetone make a difference and make more crystals fall out on the second run?

I think just use one run, ice cold dry acetone to dissolve your base, then add conc HCl dropwise till no more ppt.

3.) Is 36% HCl strong enough for this?

Yes

4.) If water in the acetone makes my crystals into a sticky mess what can I do to sort it out?

DRY acetone - distill it?

5.) How much MgSO4 crystals should I use?

crush to powder and roast. add till swirling the flask gives a 'snowdome' effect
- you should probably know this already... Wink

6.) Can the HCl acid also be dried by using the MgSO4?

absolutely not!

anyway, the HCl is 36% right? I'm assuming the other 64% is water... maybe not though.

Anyone with any ideas or experience I am interested in hearing if anyone has done this and what the results were like?

I'd suggest a bit of reading to understand the principles involved if you have not done so already.

icecool · Insistent Chemist

I wouldn't use acetone to dissolve the freebase in, use IPA the acetone will turn red upon addition of the acid.
And well for the rest which I don't mention follow fcknut's idea's.
You should add HCl 36% to dichloromethane and then seperate off the water and be left with DCM which contains 36% HCl which is dry...
You can dry that DCM with MgSO4 to get it even dryer.

java · Consumer

Drugphreak....has written several items on the chemistry of cocaine....here is an excerp dealing with the problem at hand...................java

Misterwize · Tue Aug 23, 2005 2:46 am

Thanks for the help guys.

I have it on good authority that the the lab technique works so I am going to give it a go.

Java - I tried to access the page but says that only members with sufficient can access it. Can you copy and paste it in here for me please? I am on the very long plane flight tonight and dont have the time to check it out now. cheers.

As for drying the acetone - I have heard that it does work and will evaporate any excess acetone/water mix to yield the crystals that have partially dissolved in any water.

More Q's

1.) Can I miss out using acetone altogether? Can I just drip the HCl into the ether/freebase to ppt the Coke HCl?

2.) Is ET2O is ether?

3.) if it all becomes a sticky goo from water in the solvents/Hcl how cna I dry it out?

cheers for all the help guys

java · Consumer

Here is the whole thread...........java

http://rapidshare.de/files/4263630/Drugs-forum__Leaves_to____HCL.pdf.html

icecool · Insistent Chemist

Yes Et2O is ether, and you DO need acetone it is found everywhere in the pharmacy they will have it for sure as nail polish remover anyway.
And you need to dissolve the HCl in the acetone and add that mixture to the freebase is dissolved in 100ml of ether.
Use a 1:1 ratio for the 36% HCl and acetone.

Misterwize · Tue Aug 23, 2005 11:39 am

Thanks Java and Ice cool.

I have managed to find decent acetone and ether too. So I suppsoe as long as I dry my solvents and ensure that it has been properly gassed then it should be ok.

will let you know how it goes.

Cheers for the help guys.

Misterwize · Tue Aug 23, 2005 11:50 am

Sorry Java just downloaded that thread and there is only the top two posts.

Should be ok as long as I use equal parts of Hcl and acetone and let settle. making the freebase is the easy bit but I am worried in case I fuck up the recrystallisation bit.

Could prove to be very expensive.

cheers

Stinging_Nettle · Mon Sep 05, 2005 2:30 am

There is a cocaine purification method that basically involves washing it with acetone.

There are two esters in cocaine itching to be hydrolyzed so you have to be careful with how you treat your snow.