The Vespiary

The Hive => Newbee Forum => Topic started by: ning on August 14, 2003, 12:31:00 AM

Title: base-catalyzed P2P from toluene and acetone
Post by: ning on August 14, 2003, 12:31:00 AM

Please don't beat me  :P  I promise I searched first.... :)

I was perusing a very interesting chemistry book, and tho my chemistry is very weak, something jumped out at me.
It seems very possible to join acetone to toluene to get P2P. Am I too far off base here?

Here is my imagined procedure:


0.2 mol of NaOH is dissolved in 2 moles of acetone.
1 mole of toluene is added.
The mixture is stirred, and if necesary, heat added.

The ~1 mole of P2P is removed by distillation or freezing...

This is adapted from a method to join a benzyl ketone or something to an acetone. It says to use an "excess" of acetone, how ever much that might be, to keep the P2P from bonding to eachother. I think it implied the conditions were very mild, room temp and pressure.

Would this work? Why or why not?

Title: Sorry, the only thing you're going to be ...
Post by: slappy on August 14, 2003, 10:47:00 AM

Sorry, the only thing you're going to be distilling is toluene and acetone. There is no way for these to react with each other.

Title: P2P from toluene won't happen like that...
Post by: Rhodium on August 14, 2003, 01:12:00 PM

Below is a similar idea proposed earlier, where toluene was to react with acetaldehyde to form P2P. The subsequent posts explain why it won't work, and those answers are applicable to your idea too.

Post 387226 (https://www.thevespiary.org/talk/index.php?topic=9996.msg38722600#msg38722600)

(Nitroxamide: "Amphetamine route starting with toluene?", Newbee Forum)

Title: Post 451381 Post 453611
Post by: Herr_Ovalmeister on August 14, 2003, 05:34:00 PM

Post 451381 (https://www.thevespiary.org/talk/index.php?topic=9103.msg45138100#msg45138100)

(bio: "Benzaldehyde + MEK acid catalyzed aldol", Methods Discourse)

Post 453611 (https://www.thevespiary.org/talk/index.php?topic=9103.msg45361100#msg45361100)

(Herr_Ovalmeister: "Post 208702 Post 451381 I've seen MEK (methyl...", Methods Discourse)