the Salts of Triethylbenzylphosphonium, 29 





Calculated for 

 (CJHJ(C a H,) 8 PCl. 



63-80 





i'UUXlU. 





c ... 



15-12 



14-80 



(d) 

 63-26 



H ... 



CI ... 



9-00 



14-52 



8-92 



The salt itself is a white crystalline substance scarcely deli- 

 quescent, and dissolves in a very small quantity of water ; it 

 is soluble in alcohol, but is precipitated in the crystalline form 

 on addition of dry ether. The dry salt melts at 178°-180° C. 

 without decomposition. The watery solution of the salt gives 

 with chloride of platinum a yellow voluminous precipitate, 

 already described by Hofmann. 



When the chloride of triethylbenzylphosphonium is sub- 

 jected to the action of heat, it first fuses, and at a much higher 

 temperature decomposes, yielding gaseous and solid products; 

 and although the decomposition takes place at a very high 

 temperature it is unattended by any charring. When four- 

 teen grams of pure salt were heated in a distilling-flask 

 (with an especially wide delivery-tube), the decomposition did 

 not take place until the temperature had risen above 360° C. ; 

 during the experiment 1200 cubic centira. of gas were evolved, 

 and the distillate was a solid mass of crystals. Some of the 

 gas was subjected to analysis. (7*0 cubic centim. gas needed 

 21*5 cubic centim. oxygen for combustion, yielding 14'0 cubic 

 centim. of C0 2 , the ratio being approximately 1:3:2 proved 

 it to be ethylene.) The remainder of the ethylene was ab- 

 sorbed by bromine, giving a liquid b.p. 130°-134° C, which 

 gave on analysis numbers agreeing with those needed by di- 

 bromide of ethylene, proving beyond doubt the composition of 

 the gas. The solid distillate was redistilled ; it boiled without 

 decomposition between 225°-230° C. A chlorine determina- 

 tion gave the following numbers : — # 622 grm. salt took 29*9 

 cubic centim. decinormal nitrate-of-silver solution = 17*06 

 per cent. CI. Theory for (C 7 H 7 )(C 2 H 5 ) 2 PHC1, C = 16*39 per 

 cent. The salt is soluble in water, giving an acid solution ; 

 mixed with caustic soda an oil separates, which possesses all 

 the properties of a tertiary phosphine ; it fumes strongly in 

 the air ; possesses a most penetrating smell, which differs, 

 however, from that of triethylphosphine ; it also gives a red 

 crystalline compound with bisulphide of carbon. The phos- 

 phine can be separated from the solution of caustic soda by 

 distillation in an atmosphere of hydrogen by means of a cur- 

 rent of steam. Several grams of the phosphine were thus 

 obtained. When dried over caustic soda and fractionally dis- 



