356 CONSIDERATION OF CARBON COMPOUNDS. 



carbon compounds. Organic substances containing nitrogen in the 

 nitric acid form do not occur in nature, but are obtained exclusively 

 by artificial means, generally by treatment of the organic substance 

 with concentrated nitric acid ; many of these compounds are more or 

 less explosive, as, for instance, cellulose trinitrate, glyceryl nitrate, 

 and others. 



Cyanogen compounds contain nitrogen in the form of cyanogen, 

 CN, a radical the compounds of which will be considered hereafter. 



Organic compounds containing nitrogen in the ammonia form are 

 chiefly those known as amines or amides, organic bases or alkaloids. 

 (Albuminous substances also contain nitrogen in the ammonia form). 



Amines. Whenever the hydrogen of ammonia is replaced by 

 alcoholic radicals (or hydrocarbon residues) compounds are formed 

 which are termed amines. For instance : 



H/~^ TT f^ TT f^\ T_T ^ TT 



/ /^2*-*5 .X^^-^S /^2-*-*-5 /^ 3 



Or 



NH 3 , N(C 2 H 5 )H 2 , N(C 2 H 5 ) 2 H, N(C 2 H 5 ) 3 , NCH 3 .C 2 H 5 .C 4 H 9 . 



Ammonia. Ethylamine. Diethylamine. Triethylamine. Methyl-ethyl-butylamine. 



Amines resemble ammonia in their chemical properties ; they are, 

 like ammonia, basic substances; they combine with acids directly 

 and without elimination of water, thus : 



NH 3 + HC1 = 



N(C 2 H 5 ) 3 -j- HC1 = N(C 2 H 5 ) 3 HC1. 

 Triethylamine. Triethylamine 



chloride. 



Amides are substances derived from ammonia by replacement of 

 hydrogen atoms by acid radicals. Thus : 



2 H 3 /C 2 H 3 



H H H 



Ammonia. Acetamide. Diacetamide. Carbamide or urea. 



Amides also resemble ammonia in their chemical properties ; to a 

 less extent, however, than amines, because the acid radicals have a 

 tendency to neutralize the basic properties of ammonia : 



Formamide, N(CHO)H 2 , is a colorless liquid, obtained by heating ethyl 

 formate with an alcoholic solution of ammonia. This compound is of interest 

 because it combines with chloral, forming Chloral/ ormamide ( Chloralamide) } 

 N(CHO)H 2 .C 2 HC1 3 0, a substance recently used as a hypnotic. It is a color- 

 less, odorless, crystalline substance, having a faintly bitter taste. It is soluble 

 in 20 parts of cold water and in 1.5 parts of alcohol. By heating the aqueous 

 solution to 60 C. (140 F.) it is decomposed into chloral and formamide. 



