Solventless Reactions – Summary Report

Scott Humason

CH 241 – MWF 8:30-9:50

Solventless Reactions – Summary Report

Brief Summary:
The purpose of this experiment is to learn about chemical reactions via its Melting Point. The initial products used are 3,4-dimethoxybenzaldehyde and 1-indanone. These two covalent compounds are mixed together to form an oil. NaOH is then added to form a solid compound. Following this, HCL is added to dissolve acid in the product, thus increasing pH. There are three very distinct points in regards to Melting Points and this experiment. The first, being the technical research, this gives the basis of what to expect from the experiment. The second, is to verify that our initial products are in fact what we expect them to be. The third, is to verify the results of combining the initial products and to compare them to our initial technical data. With this info, we are then able to draw some conclusions on the success of the experiment, or more specifically, the purity of the final product.

Discussion of Results:
    Melting Points - The results of the experiment, in comparison to the initial technical data gathered, was in fact very similar. By doing this process, this verifies that the initial product that we are working with is in fact, very likely to be what it says it is. 3,4-dimethoxybenzaldehyde had a starting melting point of 42.5C degrees and ended at 44C degrees. Scientific range: 42-45C. 1-indanone had a starting melting point at 38C degrees and ended at 41C degrees. Scientific range: 38-42C.

    Product collected and its melting range - The final product was a bit short of the technical data with a starting melting point of 153C and ending at 175C degrees. The lower melting point and range shows that a small percentage of impurities exist.

    Percent yield from starting materials - The initial products of 3,4-dimethoxybenzaldehyde weighed in at .2534g and 1-indanone weighed in at .2049g. This initial total before mixing is .4583g. At the completion of the experiment, .3712g was left. This means that .0871g of product was lost during the experiment, with a total product being about 81% of the initial products.

Analysis of error and quality of experiment:
I feel that the experiment went well. There is a noticeable shortcoming of converting the initial product into the final product. I feel that this had something to do with how completely the initial reactions happened. By not being extremely exact in weighing out the initial compounds, there is probably an offset of one reactant to another.

Evaluate experiment in terms of greenness:
Atom economy is stated to be excellent, meaning that this is an extremely efficient reaction. All of the atoms used in the reaction find a home in the new compound. Thy bi-products are oxygen and hydrogen that come out as water. This reaction doesn't use a solvent which considerably reduces chemical waste. Sodium hydroxide is used as a catalyst to lower the energy pathway over an activation barrier. This reduces the number of steps needed to complete the reaction, speeds up the reaction process, and is not consumed by the reaction, so this catalyst can be recycled and reused.