Acetonitrile

Acetonitrile (MeCN), an aliphatic nitrile, is a colorless liquid with a pleasant odor. It is widely used as a solvent and intermediate in organic syntheses. It is transparent to UV-visible light, making it highly applicable in spectrophotometric and fluorimetric techniques. As MeCN has low viscosity, high elution strength and is highly miscible in water, it is utilized as a mobile phase component in many chromatographic techniques. It also plays a major role as an extractant medium in liquid-liquid extraction, solid-phase extraction or microextraction. Its infrared spectrum has been recorded. Synthesis of alkyl hydroperoxides in MeCN by alkane oxidation with hydrogen peroxide in the presence of iron complexes has been studied. The hydrogenation of MeCN to form ethylamine using Co-B amorphous alloy catalyst has been investigated.

Acetonitrile (MeCN) was used to constitute mobile phase A, which is employed in the UPLC (ultra-performance liquid chromatography) based separation of underivatized amino acids derived from monoclonal antibody producing Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells.
It may be used as solvent in the following processes:

• Determination of pKa values of organic superbases using isodensity polarization continuum model (IPCM).
• Preparation of 1,2-azidoalcohols and 1,2-azidoamines via cerium(III) chloride assisted ring opening of epoxides and aziridines by sodium azide.
• Synthesis of cyano-bearing indolinones by oxidative arylalkylation of olefins in the presence of palladium catalyst.