JACKSON, DUNLAP. BROMINE DERIVATIVES OF UESORCINE. 235 



111°. Even further boiling, it seemed, failed to complete the change. 

 Upon the addition of argentic nitrate to this solution, a heavy pre- 

 cipitate of argentic bromide was obtained, showing that bromine had 

 been removed from the tribromresorcine. 



The red body which formed the organic product in the reaction was 

 amorphous, and could not be recrystallized from any solvents we 

 could find. 



It was thought that possibly in a sealed tube the reaction would 

 run much more smoothly, converting all the tribromresorcine into the 

 amorphous red body. Consequently, quite a number of experiments 

 were tried with varying amounts of the substance, heated from twelve 

 to twenty-five hours at different temperatures, but without success. 

 The tribromresorcine, it seems, is incapable of complete transformation 

 into the red body at temperatures below 200°, while at 200° it is 

 carbonized after heating for a short time. As the solubilities of the 

 red body are practically the same as those of tribromresorcine, all 

 methods for purification failed, and it could not be brought into a 

 state fit for aualysis. It is probable, however, that it contains more 

 hydroxyl groups than the tribromresorcine, forming perhaps in the 

 first place a substituted pyrogallol, (for in alkaline solutions the red 

 body immediately blackens.) which is afterwards converted into more 

 complex substances by reactions in which the hydroxyla bear a part. 



Aniline or sodic alcoholates also acted easily with the tribromresor- 

 cine, but although much bromine was evidently removed in the form 

 of hydrobromic acid or sodic bromide, in no case could any organic 

 product be isolated in a state fit for analysis. 



Sodium Salt of Tribromresorcine, C 6 HBr 3 (ONa) 2 . 2 C 2 H 5 OII. 



This salt cannot be obtained from an aqueous solution, although 

 it seemed to be formed, since upon treating tribromresorcine with a 

 dilute solution of sodic carbonate carbonic dioxide was evolved, but 

 the solution at once turned black and evidently underwent a deep- 

 seated change. The following method for obtaining it was accordingly 

 adopted. One gram of pure tribromresorcine was dissolved in absolute 

 ether, and to this was added less than the calculated amount of sodium 

 dissolved in absolute alcohol (the calculated amount of sodium is 0.13 

 gram). A precipitate immediately separated, consisting of short flat 

 prisms having a silky lustre. These were filtered off and thoroughly 

 washed with absolute ether. In the preparation of this body, t lie 

 ether must be in large excess ; if the reverse was true (that is, if the 

 absolute alcohol were in excess) no precipitate was formed. The 



