Glacial Acetic Acid as a Solvent for Prussic Acid. Benzalhydrazinophenylacetonitrile and Some Derivatives.

The Chemistry of the Hydantoins.

“…It has occasionally been found advantageous to use instead of the -amino acids their amides (381) or their nitriles (33,37,80,125,152,323,398,443,518 598). A general method for the conversion of substituted -amino nitriles into the corresponding C-5 substituted hydantoins was developed by Read (518); it was found that glacial acetic acid was a good solvent for the reaction of the nitrile with potassium cyanate, and that hydrolysis of the resulting -ureido nitrile and ring closure to the corresponding hydantoin took place when the ureido compound was heated with mineral acid: R \…”

Monohydrocyanation of Symmetrical Azines Using Potassium Hexacyanoferrate(II) as an Environmentally Friendly Cyanide Source

“…2 Although α-hydrazinonitriles have been synthesized by substitution of cyanohydrin with phenylhydrazine in ethanol 3 and reduction of N-(cyanomethyl)-N-phenylnitrous amide with zinc in acetic acid, 4 a more general route is the hydrocyanation of substances containing the C=N-N fragment, such as N,N-dialkylhydrazones 5 and N-acylhydrazones. 6 However, these hydrocyanation reactions usually use HCN 7 or KCN 8 as cyanide sources. Clearly, these compounds are highly toxic, unfriendly and unsafe for the environment.…”