Formula C2H5NO Density 1.16 g/cm³ | Boiling point 221.2 °C Appearance colorless, hygroscopic | |
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12c14c10r oxygen containing functional groups based on organic compounds acetamide rconh2
Acetamide (systematic name: ethanamide) is an organic compound with the formula CH3CONH2. It is the simplest amide derived from acetic acid. It finds some use as a plasticizer and as an industrial solvent. The related compound N,N-dimethylacetamide (DMA) is more widely used, but it is not prepared from acetamide.
Contents
- 12c14c10r oxygen containing functional groups based on organic compounds acetamide rconh2
- Laboratory scale
- Industrial scale
- Use
- Occurrence
- References
Laboratory scale
Acetamide can be produced in the laboratory by dehydrating ammonium acetate:
CH3COONH4 → CH3C(O)NH2 + H2O
Alternatively acetamide can be obtained in excellent yield via ammonolysis of acetylacetone under conditions commonly used in reductive amination.
Industrial scale
In a similar fashion to some laboratory methods, acetamide is produced dehydrating ammonium acetate or via the hydrolysis of acetonitrile, a byproduct of the production of acrylonitrile:
CH3CN + H2O → CH3C(O)NH2Use
Occurrence
Acetamide has been detected near the center of the Milky Way galaxy. This finding is potentially significant because acetamide has an amide bond, similar to the essential bond between amino acids in proteins. This finding lends support to the theory that organic molecules that can lead to life (as we know it on Earth) can form in space.
On 30 July 2015, scientists reported that upon the first touchdown of the Philae lander on comet 67/P's surface, measurements by the COSAC and Ptolemy instruments revealed sixteen organic compounds, four of which - acetamide, acetone, methyl isocyanate and propionaldehyde. - were seen for the first time on a comet.
In addition, acetamide is found infrequently on burning coal dumps, as a mineral of the same name.
