OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 271 



XXII. 



CONTRIBUTIONS FROM THE CHEMICAL LABORATORY OF 



HAUVAUD COLLEGE. 



ON THE ACTION OF SODIUM ACETACETIC ESTER 

 UPON TRIBROMDINITROBENZOL. 



By C. Lorixg Jackson axi> George Dunnixg Moore. 



Presentea May 28, 1889. 



After the action of sodium malonic ester ou tribromtrinitrobenzol 

 and on tribromdinitrobenzol had been studied, it seemed of interest to 

 determine whether sodium acetacetic ester acted in the same way, and 

 the following paper contains the results of experiments undertaken 

 with this intention upon the tribromdinitrobenzol, which was selected 

 because it can be prepared so much more easily than the correspond- 

 ing trinitro compound. These results can be summarized briefly as 

 follows. Tribromdinitrobenzol behaves with sodium acetacetic ester 

 in the same way that it does with sodium malonic ester ; tliat is, one 

 atom of its bromine is replaced by the acetacetic radical 



CHgCOCHCOOae^, 



and a second by hydrogen, while the third remains unaltered ; so that 

 the product of the action is the bromdlnitrophenylacetacetic ester, 



C,H3Br(NOo)2CH3COCHCOOC2H,, 



or to speak more accurately its sodium salt, 



C,H,,Br(NO,).CH3COCNaCOOaH5, 



The bromdlnitrophenylacetacetic ester melts at 96°, and possesses 

 marked acid properties, forming the sodium salt whose formula has 

 just been given, even with acid sodic carbonate in aqueous solution. 

 The salt has a red color, and is soluble in water ; in fact, it resem- 

 bles the sodium salt of the corresponding malonic compound most 

 closely. 



