Names | |
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IUPAC name
2,4,6-Trimethyl-1,3,5-trioxane
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Systematic IUPAC name
2,4,6-Trimethyl-1,3,5-trioxane | |
Identifiers | |
3D model (JSmol)
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ChEBI | |
ChEMBL | |
ChemSpider | |
ECHA InfoCard | 100.004.219 |
EC Number |
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KEGG | |
MeSH | Paraldehyde |
PubChem CID
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UNII | |
CompTox Dashboard (EPA)
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Properties | |
C6H12O3 | |
Molar mass | 132.159 g·mol−1 |
Appearance | Colourless liquid |
Odor | Sweet |
Density | 0.996 g/cm3 |
Melting point | 12 °C (54 °F; 285 K) |
Boiling point | 124 °C (255 °F; 397 K)[1] |
soluble 10% vv at 25 Deg. | |
Vapor pressure | 13 hPa at 20 °C[1] |
-86.2·10−6 cm3/mol | |
Pharmacology | |
N05CC05 (WHO) | |
Hazards | |
Occupational safety and health (OHS/OSH): | |
Main hazards
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Flammable |
GHS labelling: | |
Warning | |
H226 | |
P210, P233, P303+P361+P353, P370+P378, P403+P235, P501 | |
Flash point | 24°C - closed cup |
Explosive limits | Upper limit: 17 %(V) Lower limit: 1.3 %(V) |
Lethal dose or concentration (LD, LC): | |
LD50 (median dose)
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Oral - Rat - 1,530 mg/kg Dermal - Rabbit - 14,015 mg/kg |
Safety data sheet (SDS) | [1] |
Except where otherwise noted, data are given for materials in their standard state (at 25 °C [77 °F], 100 kPa).
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Paraldehyde is the cyclic trimer of acetaldehyde molecules.[2] Formally, it is a derivative of 1,3,5-trioxane, with a methyl group substituted for a hydrogen atom at each carbon. The corresponding tetramer is metaldehyde. A colourless liquid, it is sparingly soluble in water and highly soluble in ethanol. Paraldehyde slowly oxidizes in air, turning brown and producing an odour of acetic acid. It attacks most plastics and rubbers and should be kept in glass bottles.
Paraldehyde was first observed in 1835 by the German chemist Justus Liebig; its empirical formula was determined in 1838 by Liebig's student Hermann Fehling.[3][4] The German chemist Valentin Hermann Weidenbusch (1821–1893), another of Liebig's students, synthesized paraldehyde in 1848 by treating acetaldehyde with acid (either sulfuric or nitric acid) and cooling to 0°C. He found it quite remarkable that when paraldehyde was heated with a trace of the same acid, the reaction went the other way, recreating acetaldehyde.[5][6]
Paraldehyde has uses in industry and medicine.