Ah, yes, you're right, I overlooked the acetone. Well, if an acetone-water mixture was the solvent, I would assume that there would be a lot of excess acetone present, and you would no longer have a two-to-one molar ratio of benzaldehyde to acetone to start with. (I just noticed that the description says, "benzaldehyde + 2 moles of acetone," but it should be the other way around.)
Other than that, it is true that the acetone could hinder crystallization of the product, depending on how much acetone was present. In that case, the mixture could be heated for an extra period of time to drive off the more volatile acetone. (An acetone-water mixture is great for slow crystallization of water-insoluble organic solids. Dissolve the compound in acetone, add water just to the point of causing precipitation, and then let the acetone slowly evaporate overnight by leaving the container uncovered.)
Steve
Free Forum Hosting
Important Announcement
Prev Message
