NITRATION OF Chlorobenzene

 

 

NOTE

WEAR GLOVES AND LAB COAT DURING THE ENTIRE PROCEDURE

 

Chlorobenzenes and their nitration products are irritating to sensitive skin areas.  If you should have these materials on your hands and then accidentally touch your face,  this can cause a severe burning sensation in the affected area.  If this should  happen,

 

IMMEDIATELY:

 

             1. Go to the restroom and wash the affected area with lots of soap and water.

                THE SOAP IN THE LAB IS NOT SUITABLE FOR THIS PURPOSE.

 

             2. Return to the lab and apply mineral oil to the affected area.

 

             3. The summary to this warning is NOT TO TOUCH ANY PART OF YOUR BODY

                WHILE PERFORMING THIS EXPERIMENT.

 

If you must leave the lab for any reason:

 

             1. First dispose of your gloves in the waste container

 

             2. Immediately go to the restroom and wash your hands

                thoroughly with soap and water.

 

                AGAIN, LAB SOAP WILL NOT DO A SUFFICIENT CLEANING

                JOB

 

             3. Upon returning to the lab, obtain another pair of

                gloves from the front of the room, and proceed with

                the experiment.

 

------------------------- FOR SAFETY REASONS --------------------------

 

  1.           Add 700mL of tap water to your 1 L Beaker.

  2.           Discard any acid washings, plus the contents of the filter flask (from step 9 below) into your 1 L Beaker, WITH STIRRING.

  3.           Wash the contents of your 1 L Beaker down the sink.

 

PROCEDURE

 

You will need to bring a glass thermometer, and two 150 mL beakers to your hood workstation.

 

 1.            Place 1.5 mL of chlorobenzene into a small beaker/graduated cylinder, and place it in your

                hood area.

 

 2.            Prepare a mixture of 4 mL conc HNO3 and 4 mL conc H2SO4 in the 25 x 150mm test tube provided at your lab bench. Cool it to room temperature by means of a water bath, at your hood workstation.  Use one of the 150 mL beakers you brought to your hood workstation as the water bath.

 

 3.            Once the tube has reached 30 oC as read on your glass thermometer, remove the tube from the water bath, wipe off the outside of the tube, and clamp it to your hotplate ringstand – suspended over an empty 150 mL beaker.

                ( See the figure posted at your hood area ).

 

 4.            To the tube, add the chlorobenzene in small portions, using the dropper provided at your lab bench,  over a period of about 5-10 min; gently stirring the tube to mix the contents after each addition.  Keep the reaction mixture between 50 - 55 oC.  DO NOT ALLOW THE REACTION MIXTURE TO EXCEED 60 oC.  The temperature may be controlled by allowing more time between the addition of successive  portions of chlorobenzene and by cooling the reaction vessel as necessary with an ice water bath.

5.            After the addition is completed and the exothermic reaction has subsided, stopper and shake the tube for 5 min, until most of the upper layer of chlorobenzene is gone.

 

 6.            Cool the tube in an ice bath to room temperature.

 

 7.            Pour the reaction mixture into 50 mL of ice which is in a 150 mL beaker.

 

 8.            Isolate the crude product by vacuum filtration.

 

 9.            Wash the filter cake thoroughly with cold (0-10oC) distilled water and dry the filter cake by allowing the vacuum apparatus to draw air through it after you have finished washing.

 

10.           Transfer the crystals to a TARED 50 mL Erlenmeyer flask and obtain the weight of your wet product.  Place the washings into the 1L beaker.

 

  1. Calculate the volume of 95%(v/v) ethanol needed to just dissolve the chloronitrobenzenes at 78.2oC (the boiling point of 95%(v/v) ethanol). You will need approx. 5 mL 95% ethanol per gram of crude product. SHOW THIS CALCULATION IN THE PROCEDURE PORTION OF YOUR REPORT.  If your calculation yields a value

falling between x0 and x5 - ( say, 23 ) – add 25 mL.

 

       12.    Bring this mixture to boiling to dissolve the crude product.  If the product does not completely dissolve after 2 minutes of boiling, add an additional 5 mL of 95%(v/v) ethanol.  If solid still remains you will have to do a hot filtration.  Once your crude product has dissolved, set the flask onto your lab bench and allow the contents to cool slowly to room temperature.

 

  1. Isolate the nearly pure crystals of your product by vacuum filtration.  If there is solid material in the filter flask at this point, pour it into a beaker and vacuum filter this solution again through the funnel containing the first crop of nitrobromobenzene.  Save the filtrate.

 

  1. Wash the crystals with a little ICE COLD ethanol, allowing the washes to drain into the filter flask containing the filtrate.  The filtrate may now be poured into the recovered organic solvents container at the east end of the lab.

 

  1. Allow air to be drawn through the Buchner funnel for 5 min. then detach the vacuum hose from the filter flask, turn off the water and transfer the solid from the Buchner funnel onto 11cm filter paper which is on a watch glass.  Spread the solid over most of the filter paper, breaking large clumps into small particles and put it in your drawer to dry overnight.  Place another piece of filter paper lightly over the crystals to keep the dust out.

 

WASH DOWN YOUR BENCHTOP WITH A SMALL PORTION OF 95% ETHANOL ON A PAPER TOWEL.  PLACE THE PAPER TOWEL INTO THE SOLID RECOVERY JAR AT LAB STATION 12.  DO NOT USE THE LAB SPONGE TO WIPE DOWN YOUR BENCHTOP !!!!!*

 

  1. Determine the weight and melting point of your product during the ensuing week.

 

  1. Dispose of the product into the recovery bottle at the east end of the lab.

 

 

AGAIN, WASH DOWN YOUR BENCHTOP WITH A SMALL PORTION OF 95% ETHANOL ON A PAPER TOWEL.  PLACE THE PAPER TOWEL INTO THE SOLID RECOVERY JAR AT LAB STATION 12.