Chloromethane
Chloromethane or methyl chloride is an organic compound containing chlorine. It has the chemical formula CH3Cl. Chloromethane is the simplest organochloride. It has the same structure as methane, but with one hydrogen atom replaced by chlorine.
Preparation
[change | change source]Methyl chloride was first made in 1835 using sulfuric acid, sodium chloride, and methanol. Modern production uses a similar method, but uses hydrogen chloride instead of sulfuric acid and salt:[1]
- CH3OH + HCl → CH3Cl + H2O
Uses
[change | change source]Like many organochlorides, methyl chloride is an alkylating agent: it can add its methyl group to other chemicals, called methylation. The main use for methyl chloride is the direct process to make organosilicon compounds. Dimethyldichlorosilane, a monomer used to make silicone, is the most important compound made from this process.[2]
It may also be used to make methyllithium and methylmagnesium chloride, two other methylating agents. Methyllithium made from methyl chloride is purer than when made from methyl bromide, because lithium chloride is less soluble in the ether solvents used to store methyllithium.[3]
Methyl chloride was historically used as a refrigerant called Freon-40.[source?]
Sources
[change | change source]- ↑ "Molecule of the Week: Chloromethane". American Chemical Society. 2021-08-23. Retrieved 2026-01-27.
- ↑ Seyferth, Dietmar (2001). "Dimethyldichlorosilane and the Direct Synthesis of Methylchlorosilanes. The Key to the Silicones Industry". Organometallics. 20 (24): 4978–4992. doi:10.1021/om0109051.
- ↑ Michael J. Lusch, William V. Phillips, Ronald F. Sieloff, Glenn S. Nomura, and Herbert O. House (1984). "Preparation of low-halide methyllithium". Organic Syntheses. 62: 101
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