This post is the video companion to this video.
Today's experiment will be making a
minty-scented oil for the winter time: methyl salicylate, or oil of
wintergreen. This can be made simply from two very common and easy to obtain
chemicals, and with a very simple procedure. This is also one of my first
forays into organic chemistry!
Materials
- 13.0 g aspirin, C9H8O4 (the actual tablets will weigh more!)
- 60 mL methanol, CH3OH
- 8 mL concentrated sulfuric acid, H2SO4
- Distilled water
Reaction
1 mol aspirin + 2 mol methanol --> 1 mol methyl acetate + 1 mol methyl salicylate