THE  AMERICAN 
JOURNAL  OF  PHARMACY 
THE    DETERMINATION    OF    ACETANILID  AND  PHE- 
NACETIN  IN  PHARMACEUTICAL  PREPARATIONS. 
By  Joseph  l,.  Turner  and  Charees  E.  Vanderkeeed. 
Although  pharmaceutical  literature  abounds  in  methods  for  the 
qualitative  detection  of  acetanilid  and  phenacetin  and  for  distinguish- 
ing one  from  the  other,  a  search  has  failed  to  reveal  any  methods 
for  their  quantitative  determination  save  the  one  given  by  Puckner 
(Proceedings  of  A.  Ph.  A.,  Vol.  53  [1905],  p.  289),  which,  however, 
can  be  successfully  applied  only  to  mixtures  containing,  besides 
acetanilid,  inorganic  salts  and  alkaloids.  This  method  at  once  be- 
comes unreliable  whenever  the  composition  of  the  mixture  is  ren- 
dered more  complex  by  the  presence  of  other  organic  constituents. 
The  necessity,  therefore,  for  a  method  which  will  permit  of  the 
estimation  of  acetanilid..  or  phenacetin,  in  a  mixture,  no  matter  how 
complicated  it  may  be,  is  self-evident,  especially  in  view  of  that  pro- 
vision of  the  Food  and  Drugs  Act  of  June  30,  1906,  which  requires 
an  accurate  statement  on  the  label  of  the  amount  of  acetanilid  or 
phenacetin  present  in  a  preparation. 
For  the  estimation  of  acetanilid,  taken  as  such,  two  methods  are 
possible : — 
I.  Saponification  of  the  acetanilid  by  means  of  an  alkali ;  distil- 
lation of  the  resulting  anilin  from  an  alkaline  solution  ;  acidulation 
of  the  distillate  with  hydrochloric  acid  ;  diazotization  by  means  of 
sodium  nitrite  at  low  temperature ;  and  finally,  combination  with 
beta-naphtol-alpha-disulphonic  acid.1  The  amount  of  azo-dye  thus 
formed  can  be  estimated  by  colorimetric  comparison  with  a  solution 
1  Reverdin  and  Harpe,  Berichte,  22,  1004. 
(ISO 
