Methyl azide is an
organic compound
In chemistry, organic compounds are generally any chemical compounds that contain carbon-hydrogen or carbon-carbon bonds. Due to carbon's ability to catenate (form chains with other carbon atoms), millions of organic compounds are known. T ...
with the formula . It is a white solid and it is the simplest
organic azide.
Preparation and properties
Methyl azide can be prepared by the
methylation of
sodium azide, for instance with
dimethyl sulfate in alkaline solution, followed by passing through a tube of anhydrous
calcium chloride
Calcium chloride is an inorganic compound, a salt with the chemical formula . It is a white crystalline solid at room temperature, and it is highly soluble in water. It can be created by neutralising hydrochloric acid with calcium hydroxide.
Ca ...
or
sodium hydroxide to remove contaminating
hydrazoic acid.
The first synthesis was reported in 1905.
It decomposes in a
first-order reaction:
:
Methyl azide might be a potential precursor in the synthesis of prebiotic molecules via nonequilibrium reactions on
interstellar ice Interstellar ice consists of grains of volatiles in the ice phase that form in the interstellar medium. Ice and dust grains form the primary material out of which the Solar System was formed. Grains of ice are found in the dense regions of molecular ...
s initiated by energetic
galactic cosmic rays
Cosmic rays are high-energy particles or clusters of particles (primarily represented by protons or atomic nuclei) that move through space at nearly the speed of light. They originate from the Sun, from outside of the Solar System in our own ...
(GCR) and
photons.
Safety precautions
Methyl azide is stable at ambient temperature but may explode when heated. Presence of
mercury increases the sensitivity to shock and spark. It is incompatible with methanol and
dimethyl malonate.
When heated to decomposition, it emits toxic fumes of . It can be stored indefinitely in the dark at −80 °C.
References
External links
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{{Azides
Organoazides
Explosive chemicals
Substances discovered in the 1900s