I'm curious about the synthesis of diethyl ether from denatured ethanol.
The denaturants being approximately 1% ethyl acetate, 1% methyl isobutyl ketone, and 5% methanol.
The method of synthesis being the sulfuric acid catalyzed dehydration of denatured ethanol in a distillation apparatus heated between 35-78°C.
Significant impurities present in the diethyl ether collection chamber presumably being dimethyl ether and/or ethyl methyl ether.
My questions are as follows:
1. Would this method of synthesis work without posing any unnecessary hazards or unforeseen complications?
2. Would the dimethyl ether and/or ethyl methyl ether impurities evaporate out of solution due to their lower boiling points, or remain dissolved in
the diethyl ether?
3. What other impurities might be present in the collection chamber in tangible quantities?
4. What happens to the methyl isobutyl ketone and ethyl acetate denaturants?
5. How might the produced diethyl ether be further purified?entropy51 - 2-2-2011 at 17:59
Much obliged. I seem to have misplaced my notes on the matter. But my main question was as to what byproducts would result from using denatured
alcohol as the starting material, a topic I didn't imagine having been covered already.
[Edited on 3-2-2011 by sentinel097]
[Edited on 3-2-2011 by sentinel097]smuv - 2-2-2011 at 22:00
Next time post in the proper thread; I hope a moderator grafts this onto an ether thread.
MIBK contaminates with: MIBK and condensation products of MIBK
Ethyl acetate contaminates with: acetic acid and ethyl acetate.
All of these are in addition to the ethyl alcohol, ethylene, water, acetaldehyde, sulfurous acid and sulfuric acid that will contaminate your
product.
The only contaminants that are hard to remove (after following the proscribed brine, acid, and base workup) are methyl ethyl ether and dimethyl ether,
both of these contaminants have almost no effect on ether for solvent purposes.
Also, follow a textbook procedure TO THE LETTER. Most people don't do this, and surprise, surprise, they recover mostly unconverted ethanol. Also,
if in doubt, it is better to add the ethanol too slowly than too quickly (but make sure you have a tube from your vac adaptor going out the window, so
that you don't release needless amounts of ethylene into the room).
Edit: also, stirring makes this reaction go SOOO much smoother. Even on smallish scales a huge amount of bumping occurs upon the addition of ethanol
without stirring.
