Okay, so today I wanted to mess around with making n-ethylpropanamine. I’d read a little about it, and it seemed like a fun little chemistry project. Nothing too crazy, just a simple synthesis to try out.
Getting Started
First things first, I needed to gather my supplies. I already had some propanal and ethylamine, which are the main ingredients. I also made sure I had some sodium borohydride – that’s the reducing agent that helps the reaction along. And, of course, I got all my safety gear: gloves, goggles, and a lab coat. Gotta be safe, you know?
Mixing Things Up
I started by carefully measuring out the propanal and ethylamine.I mixed about equal amounts. I didn’t use the exact proportions for the chemical. I just add a little bit more ethylamine. I wanted to make sure the propanal was fully reacted.
I put those into a flask and gave them a good stir. Then, slowly – and I mean slowly – I started adding the sodium borohydride. This stuff can react pretty vigorously, so you don’t want to add it all at once. It’s better add little by little.
As I added the sodium borohydride, I kept the flask in an ice bath. This helps to control the reaction and prevent it from getting too hot. I kept stirring everything to make sure it was all mixing well.
Waiting Game
Once all the sodium borohydride was in, I took the flask out of the ice bath and let it come to room temperature. I kept stirring it for a few hours, just to make sure the reaction had plenty of time to complete. I am not sure how long exactly it should take. So just let it run for a long time.
The Final Product(Maybe)
After a few hours, theoretically, the reaction should be done. The end result,I hope it should be n-ethylpropanamine. I will need some way to test it.
It looks like it is done. But I’m not 100% sure I did everything perfectly. Anyway. I have a try.