Hi
Not sure if this is the right section but does anyone know if this recipe will work?
Preparation of phenylnitropropanol:
Into a suitable beaker or conical flask place 51mls of benzaldehyde, followed by 33mls of nitroethane,
immediately thereafter add in 30 mls of a 30% potassium carbonate solution, rapidly stir the entire
mixture at room temperature for 2 hrs.
A cold water bath or ice bath may be needed to keep the reaction mixture at ambient temperature
(room temperature) or below. Do not allow the reaction mixture to get above 25 degrees celsius.
After stirring for 2 hrs add to the reaction mixture 200mls of diethyl ether, shortly thereafter add in
90mls of a 10% sodium bisulfite solution and moderately stir the entire reaction mixture for 30 minutes.
Afterwards place the entire reaction mixture into a seperatory funnel and remove the lower aqueous
layer, leave the ether layer in the seperatory funnel and wash the ether layer with 3 x 75ml portions of
cold water, each time removing the lower aqueous layer.
Place the ether layer into a suitable beaker or conical flask and add 15gms of anhydrous magnesium
sulfate and stir the entire mixture for 10 minutes to absorb any water in the ether. Then filter off the
magnesium sulfate.
Place the filtered ether mixture into a distallation apparatus and remove the ether, when no more ether
passes over or is collected allow the residue to cool to room temperature, then collect this residue as it
consists of the desired phenylnitropropanol.
