Coca, cocaine and its salts : their history, medical and economic uses, and medicinal preparations.

  • William Martindale
Date:
1886
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Coca, cocaine and its salts : their history, medical and economic uses, and medicinal preparations. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    68/90 (page 52)
    CHAPTER XIV. COCAINE AND ITS SALTS. Cocaina, Cocaine. Dose—-fV to 1 grain, in a pill or tablet. This now important alkaloid was first isolated by Niemann in 1860. From analysis he gave it the formula of C32 II20 NOs (old notation), but Lossen in 1862 assigned it the now accepted formula of C17 H.,, N04 (new nota- tion). It has a bitterish taste, and crystallizes in shining monoclinic prisms. It requires 700 or more (upwards of 1,300, Dr. Paul) parts of water to dissolve it, it is more soluble in alcohol (about 1 in 20), freely so in chloroform, ether (about 1 in 3), oil of cloves, and many other volatile oils, and 1 in 10 respectively of melted vaseline and castor oil, and other fixed oils. The following arc also ready solvents, each takiug up about 1 of it in 3 parts: benzol, toluol, and nmylic alcohol; of petroleum spirit about 25 parts are required. The latter solutions have proved serviceable in eye cases. Manufacturers inform us that good Coca leaves yield 0'5 per cent, ormore of Cocaine, but the average is less, if fermented—often nil. Cocaine seems to be very sensitive to chemical and physical action, and readily yields derivatives. The dried leaves are also said to contain Hygrin, a volatile principle, with Ecgonine, Coca-tannin, and Coca-wax. Ecgonine (together with benzoic acid and methyl-alcohol) may also be obtained as a derivative from Cocaine when the latter is heated with hydrochloric acid, thu3:— C17 H21 N04 + 2ID 0=C,, H15 N03 + Cj H<j Oo + CII, O Cocaine. A\ ater. Ecgonine. Benzoic Methyl Acid. Alcohol. By conccutrating hy evaporation an aqueous solution of pure Cocaine, Dr. Paul obtained a gummy residue which eventually crystallized, and which he supposed to he Ecgonine. It was much more soluble in water than Cocaine. V . Merck also, by operation with hydrochloric acid on a by-product, benzoyl ecgonine, obtained iu the