NEF. — NITROPARAFFINE SALTS. 133 



the salt slowly loses its alcohol ou standing over sulphuric acid in a 

 vacuum, but never completely. An analysis of a salt, which had been 

 kept 14 hours in a desiccator, gave the following figures 



0.2500 gram gave 0.1791 gram NaaSOi. 



Theory for Theory for 



CIIoNOoNa. CHaNO^Na + CaHeO. Found. 



Na 27.71 17.83 ' 23.21 



The constitution of this alkoholate is very probably 



/OC0H5 

 CH3-N 



II \ONa, 

 O 



formed by the addition of the sodium ethylate to the nitro group. 

 Sodic nitromethane, free from alcohol, 



O 



II 

 CHo = NONa, 



which is best obtained by treating nitromethane in ethereal solution 

 with sodium, is a very unstable and remarkable body, whicli seems to 

 exist only under great tension. On adding a small amount of water 

 to it, spontaneous decomposition, with tremendous evolution of heat 

 and ofttiraes explosion, takes place.* On allowing an aqueous solu- 

 tion of the salt to evaporate spontaneously, it is decomposed chiefly 

 into sodic carbonate and sodic nitrite (besides other products). The 

 alcoholate of sodic nitromethane is much more stable than the pure 

 sodium salt, but behaves otherwise in an entirely analogous manner. 

 On adding an aqueous solution of either of these salts to dilute sul- 

 phuric acid or hydrochloric acid, decomposition into nitrous oxide, 

 formaldehyde, nitrous acid, carbonic acid, and hydroxylamine takes 

 place, and not a trace of nitrnmethane is regenerated. 



The amount of nitrous oxide formed is small, as is evident from the 

 following determinations. 



2 grams sodium salt, made by means of sodium ethylate and kept a 



long time in a vacuum, gave 20 c.cm. N2O at 20° and 752 mm., 

 corresponding to 7.44 per cent of the theory for CHgNOoNa, 



3 grams sodium salt, made by means of sodium ethylate and used 



directly, gave 26 c.cm. NoO at 22°, and 748 mm., correspond- 

 ing to 7.48 per cent of the theory for CHgNOgNa -f ^ CoHcO. 



* Ann. Chem. (Liebig), CLXXI. 34. 



