Béchamp reduction
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Bechamp reduction
)Chemical reaction converting nitro compounds
For method to prepare aromatic arsonic acids, see Bechamp reaction.
Bechamp reduction | |
---|---|
Named after | Antoine Béchamp |
Reaction type | Organic redox reaction |
Identifiers | |
RSC ontology ID | RXNO:0000498 |
The Béchamp reduction (or Béchamp process) is a
- 4 C6H5NO2 + 9 Fe + 4 H2O → 4 C6H5NH2 + 3 Fe3O4
This reaction was once a major route to aniline, but
catalytic hydrogenation is the preferred method.[2]
Reaction history and scope
Main article: Reduction of nitro compounds
The reaction was first used by
Aliphatic nitro compounds are however more difficult to reduce, often remaining as the hydroxylamine. Tertiary aliphatic nitro compounds, however, are converted in good yield to the amine using the Béchamp reduction.[6]
The reduction proceeds in a multistep manner. First, the nitro group is reduced to nitroso, which undergoes hydrogenation to a hydroxylamino group prior to further reduction to the amine.[7]
Laux process
The traditional Béchamp reduction cogenerates gray-black iron oxides. The Laux process is based on the finding that the oxide coproduct is strongly affected by various additives, such as
ferrous chloride, aluminium chloride, and even simply sulfuric acid, which are added before heating the iron-nitrobenzene mixture. The innovations from Laux have shifted the emphasis of the Béchamp reduction for the manufacture of anilines to the production of valuable iron oxide pigments.[8] The method is still effective for reduction of nitroaromatics.[9]
Further reading
- Organic Reactions 2, 428 (1944)
References
- ISBN 978-3527306732.
- ISBN 978-0-8247-2481-8.
- ^ Béchamp, Antoine (1854). "De l'action des protosels de fer sur la nitronaphtaline et la nitrobenzine. nouvelle méthode de formation des bases organiques artificielles de Zinin". Annales de chimie et de physique. 42: 186–196.
- .
- .
- doi:10.1039/c4ra00332b. Archived from the original(PDF) on 12 February 2023. Retrieved 29 April 2022.
- ISBN 9780470638859.
- ISBN 978-3527306732.
- .