Diphenylmethanol is the

organic compound Some chemical authorities define an organic compound as a chemical compound that contains a carbon–hydrogen or carbon–carbon bond; others consider an organic compound to be any chemical compound that contains carbon. For example, carbon-co ...

with the formula (C₆H₅)₂CHOH. Also known as benzhydrol, it is a white solid and the parent member of a large class of diaryl alcohols.

Preparation

Diphenylmethanol may be prepared by a Grignard reaction between

phenylmagnesium bromide Phenylmagnesium bromide, with the simplified formula , is a magnesium-containing organometallic compound. It forms colorless crystals. It is commercially available as a solution in diethyl ether or tetrahydrofuran (THF). Phenylmagnesium bromide i ...

and

benzaldehyde Benzaldehyde (C6H5CHO) is an organic compound consisting of a benzene ring with a formyl substituent. It is among the simplest aromatic aldehydes and one of the most industrially useful. It is a colorless liquid with a characteristic almond-li ...

. An alternative method involves reducing

benzophenone Benzophenone is a naturally occurring organic compound with the formula (C6H5)2CO, generally abbreviated Ph2CO. Benzophenone has been found in some fungi, fruits and plants, including grapes. It is a white solid with a low melting point and ros ...

with

sodium borohydride Sodium borohydride, also known as sodium tetrahydridoborate and sodium tetrahydroborate, is an inorganic compound with the formula (sometimes written as ). It is a white crystalline solid, usually encountered as an aqueous basic solution. Sodi ...

or with

zinc Zinc is a chemical element; it has symbol Zn and atomic number 30. It is a slightly brittle metal at room temperature and has a shiny-greyish appearance when oxidation is removed. It is the first element in group 12 (IIB) of the periodic tabl ...

dust or with sodium amalgam and water.

Uses and safety

It has uses in

perfume Perfume (, ) is a mixture of fragrance, fragrant essential oils or aroma compounds (fragrances), Fixative (perfumery), fixatives and solvents, usually in liquid form, used to give the human body, animals, food, objects, and living-spaces an agre ...

and

pharmaceutical Medication (also called medicament, medicine, pharmaceutical drug, medicinal product, medicinal drug or simply drug) is a drug used to diagnose, cure, treat, or prevent disease. Drug therapy ( pharmacotherapy) is an important part of the ...

manufacture. In perfumery it is used as a fixative. In pharmaceutical manufacture it is used in the

synthesis Synthesis or synthesize may refer to: Science Chemistry and biochemistry *Chemical synthesis, the execution of chemical reactions to form a more complex molecule from chemical precursors **Organic synthesis, the chemical synthesis of organi ...

antihistamines Antihistamines are drugs which treat allergic rhinitis, common cold, influenza, and other allergies. Typically, people take antihistamines as an inexpensive, generic (not patented) drug that can be bought without a prescription and provides r ...

/ antiallergenic agents and

antihypertensive Antihypertensives are a class of drugs that are used to treat hypertension (high blood pressure). Antihypertensive therapy seeks to prevent the complications of high blood pressure, such as stroke, heart failure, kidney failure and myocardial infa ...

agents . It is used in the synthesis of

modafinil Modafinil, sold under the brand name Provigil among others, is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant and wakefulness-promoting agent, eugeroic (wakefulness promoter) medication used primarily to treat narcolepsy, a sleep disorder characteri ...

{{Cite patent, country=EP, number=1583739, title=Method for preparing methyl 2-diphenylmethylsulfinylacetate, pubdate=2005-10-12 , assign=Organisation de Synthese Mondi , inventor1-last=Rose , inventor1-first=Sebastien , inventor2-last=Klein , inventor2-first=Dominique and the

benzhydryl The benzhydryl compounds are a group of organic compounds whose parent structure, parent structural formula, structures include diphenylmethane (which is two benzene rings connected by a single substituent#Methane substituents, methane), with any ...

group is present in the structure of many histamine

H1 antagonist H1 antagonists, also called H1 blockers, are a class of pharmaceutical drug, medications that block the action of histamine at the histamine H1 receptor, H1 receptor, helping to relieve allergy, allergic reactions. Agents where the main therapeu ...

s like diphenylhydramine. Benzhydrol is also used in the production of

agrochemicals An agrochemical or agrichemical, a contraction of ''agricultural chemical'', is a chemical product used in industrial agriculture. Agrichemical typically refers to biocides (pesticides including insecticides, herbicides, fungicides and nematicid ...

as well as other organic compounds and as a terminating group in

polymerization In polymer chemistry, polymerization (American English), or polymerisation (British English), is a process of reacting monomer molecules together in a chemical reaction to form polymer chains or three-dimensional networks. There are many fo ...

s. Diphenylmethanol is an irritant to the eyes, skin and respiratory system.

References

Secondary alcohols Benzhydryl compounds