Cinnoline is an

aromatic In organic chemistry, aromaticity is a chemical property describing the way in which a conjugated system, conjugated ring of unsaturated bonds, lone pairs, or empty orbitals exhibits a stabilization stronger than would be expected from conjugati ...

heterocyclic compound A heterocyclic compound or ring structure is a cyclic compound that has atoms of at least two different elements as members of its ring(s). Heterocyclic organic chemistry is the branch of organic chemistry dealing with the synthesis, proper ...

with the formula C₈H₆N₂. It is

isomer In chemistry, isomers are molecules or polyatomic ions with identical molecular formula – that is, the same number of atoms of each element (chemistry), element – but distinct arrangements of atoms in space. ''Isomerism'' refers to the exi ...

ic with other naphthyridines including

quinoxaline A quinoxaline, also called a benzopyrazine, in organic chemistry, is a heterocyclic compound containing a ring complex made up of a benzene ring and a pyrazine ring. It is isomeric with other naphthyridines including quinazoline, phthalazine and c ...

, phthalazine and quinazoline.

Properties

The free base can be obtained as an oil by treatment of the hydrochloride with base. It co-crystallizes with one molecule of ether as white silky needles, (m.p. 24–25 °C) upon cooling ethereal solutions. The free base melts at 39 °C. It has a taste resembling that of

chloral hydrate Chloral hydrate is a geminal diol with the formula . It was first used as a sedative and hypnotic in Germany in the 1870s. Over time it was replaced by safer and more effective alternatives but it remained in use in the United States until at ...

and leaves a sharp irritation for some time.

Discovery and synthesis

The compound was first obtained in impure form by cyclization of the

alkyne \ce \ce Acetylene \ce \ce \ce Propyne \ce \ce \ce \ce 1-Butyne In organic chemistry, an alkyne is an unsaturated hydrocarbon containing at least one carbon—carbon triple bond. The simplest acyclic alkynes with only one triple bond and n ...

''o''-C₆H₄(N₂Cl)C≡CCO₂H in water to give 4-hydroxycinnoline-3-carboxylic acid. This material could be decarboxylated and the hydroxyl group reductively removed to give the parent heterocycle. This reaction is called the Richter cinnoline synthesis. Improved methods exist for its synthesis. It can be prepared by dehydrogenation of dihydrocinnoline with freshly precipitated mercuric oxide. It can be isolated as the hydrochloride. Cinnolines are cinnoline derivatives. A classic

organic reaction Organic reactions are chemical reactions involving organic compounds. The basic organic chemistry reaction types are addition reactions, elimination reactions, substitution reactions, pericyclic reactions, rearrangement reactions, mechanistic organ ...

for synthesizing cinnolines is the Widman–Stoermer synthesis, a

ring-closing reaction A cyclic compound (or ring compound) is a term for a compound in the field of chemistry in which one or more series of atoms in the compound is connected to form a ring. Rings may vary in size from three to many atoms, and include examples where ...

of an α-vinyl-

aniline Aniline (From , meaning ' indigo shrub', and ''-ine'' indicating a derived substance) is an organic compound with the formula . Consisting of a phenyl group () attached to an amino group (), aniline is the simplest aromatic amine. It is an in ...

with

hydrochloric acid Hydrochloric acid, also known as muriatic acid or spirits of salt, is an aqueous solution of hydrogen chloride (HCl). It is a colorless solution with a distinctive pungency, pungent smell. It is classified as a acid strength, strong acid. It is ...

and sodium nitrite: Widman-stoermer-reaction

A conceptually related reaction is the Bamberger triazine synthesis towards triazines. Another cinnoline method is the Borsche cinnoline synthesis.

Safety

Cinnoline is toxic.

References

{{reflist Aromatic bases

Properties

Discovery and synthesis

Safety

See also

References