350 Drs. A. D. Waller and E. H. Aders Plimmer. [June 12, 



acid added ; after the same time, however, only a very small quantity 

 of white crystals were precipitated, but on adding a large excess of 

 phosphotungstic acid, and allowing the solution to stand another week, 

 white crystals were gradually precipitated, which, when washed and 

 dried at 100 C., weighed 0'6 gramme. 



These observations show that the presence of sugar slightly hinders 

 the precipitation of betaine by means of phosphotungstic acid, and 

 that in order to precipitate it under these conditions a large excess 

 of the reagent is required. 



When working with large quantities of suar, this method of 

 removing sugar with lead oxide is almost impossible to carry out 

 in the laboratory. I was led, therefore, to adopt a different method, 

 utilising the ready solubility of betaine in alcohol ; a certain quantity of 

 sugar is also dissolved, but this is insufficient to prevent the precipita- 

 tion of betaine by phosphotungstic acid, and as the above experiment 

 shows, it can be practically completely precipitated by excess of the 

 re-agent. 



1000 grammes of raw beet-sugar were exhaustively extracted in two- 

 portions of 500 grammes each, with 2 litres of methylated spirit. The 

 alcoholic extract so obtained was evaporated down in vacuo to a syrup y 

 the syrup dissolved in J litre of water, and to this solution, warmed 

 on the water-bath, 200 c.c. of phosphotungstic acid solution (30 per 

 cent. + 5 per cent. H 2 S0 4 ) were added. A brownish crystalline 

 precipitate was obtained, which was filtered off after it had stood for 

 a week, so as to complete the precipitation, washed with a little water, 

 and dried at 100 C ; it weighed 50 grammes. This precipitate, suspended 

 in water, was then decomposed with excess of baryta, and the filtrate 

 from the insoluble barium phosphotungstate was evaporated down to 

 dryness, after removal from it of excess of baryta by means of carbon 

 dioxide; the brown residue so obtained was dissolved in alcohol r 

 acidified with hydrochloric acid, and treated with 10 grammes of mercuric 

 chloride dissolved in alcohol ; betaine hydrochloride in combination 

 with mercuric chloride was thus precipitated in white crystalline 

 needles free from the brown colouring matter ; on decomposing it in 

 aqueous solution with sulphuretted hydrogen, and evaporating to- 

 dryness, white crystals of betaine hydrochloride were obtained, weighing 

 2*3 grammes ; recrystallised once from alcohol they were obtained quite 

 pure, and melted at 238 239 C. with decomposition. (The melting 

 point of betaine hydrochloride obtained by Jahns 5 from wormseeds, 

 Artemisia cina, melted at 227 228 C., but this is in all probability 

 too low. A specimen obtained from Merck melted at 237 238 C. 

 A synthetical specimen from Schuchardt, after separation from it of 

 about 80 per cent, of potassium chloride, melted at 237 238 C.) 



Analyses of the substance obtained from raw beet-sugar and dried 

 at 100 C. gave the following result : 



