Organic synthesis
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I am hoping to do my A2 investigation on the optimum reaction conditions needed for aspirin synthesis. To do this, I was thinking of studying two factors. 1) The effect of heating under reflux for varying lengths of time and 2) The effect of using different ethanoylating agents.
Does this sound like a promising area for study, and how could I use this to assess the optimum conditions? Looking at the purity and percentage composition of my aspirin sample?
Igloo writes ...
In theory this does look like a promising area for research, but it will be very labour- and time-intensive. You would need to carry out the same sort of lengthy practical work several times, followed by a suitable extraction of the aspirin product followed by its analysis to determine the percentage yield. In addition there are one or two difficulties which would have to be overcome. Perhaps the most important of these is the need to follow exactly the same preparative and extraction procedure for each experiment. Aspirin is obtained via recrystallisation, so you would need to use precisely the same volumes of water during this procedure and you would have to collect crystals at exactly the same temperature. Even so, supersaturation could ruin your attempts.
Although you have some interesting ideas for research, I am sure you should think of something else. I am sorry to appear disheartening, but I do not think your project is a feasible one for examination purposes.
Always carry out a risk assessment and check with your teacher before starting any practical work.
Risk assessment
Before attempting any practical work based on the advice and suggestions on this website, you must do the following. Identify any hazards, assess the risks from these hazards, and then decide appropriate control measures to reduce the risks. You must have these approved by those in authority in your school or college laboratory. Do not rely on what is said on this website.
For further guidance see our tutorial on Risk Assessment.
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updated: 08 November 2007
