Chemical Forums
General Forums => Generic Discussion => Topic started by: heckindale on June 17, 2019, 11:20:09 AM
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Hello people, welcome to my first post! ;D
I was on PubChem, just researching ADHD medication; methylphenidate and methylphenidate hydrochloride, and I've got two questions I can't find the answer to: - Why is there a hydrochloride salt variant?
- There are so many chemicals with the formula C14H20ClNO2, how do they control the structure during synthesis?
I genuinely appreciate any responses!
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Hydrochloride salts are made to simplify purification, and because they are more soluble in water (like in your body).
Controlled molecular structure of such species is a whole field of science known as synthetic organic chemistry. Go down the wiki rabbit hole!
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Hydrochloride salts are made to simplify purification.
In what way does it simplify purification? Also, I don't quite understand how the HCl is associated with the main methylphenidate section; how or if it's attracted in anyway.
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Hydrochloride salts are made to simplify purification.
In what way does it simplify purification? Also, I don't quite understand how the HCl is associated with the main methylphenidate section; how or if it's attracted in anyway.
By changing it from the non-charged species, which would likely have low water solubility, to the charged salt, which has much higher water solubility. If you look at the structure of methyl phenidate, you’ll see a nitrogen contained in the form of an amine. It has a lone pair of electrons, which it can use to attack electrophilic species. If you put it into a solution of HCl, it will form a bond to the H+, giving the nitrogen a +1 charge. That is balanced out by the Cl- counter ion to give the HCl salt.
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That helps a lot, thank you, sir! :D
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That helps a lot, thank you, sir! :D
Ma'am*
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I'm going to make a terrible scientist if I keep making assumptions like that ::)