Pyridine is just the aromatic base structure of nicotine and other related compounds. Starting from pyridine would require you to rebuild both the alkyl groups and the nitrogen functionality, which is far less efficient than using nicotinic acid (niacin), which already contains a functionalized pyridine ring. Nicotinic acid is closer to the desired structure of nicotine because it already has the pyridine ring and a carboxyl group. The challenge is transforming that carboxyl group into the correct ethylamine side chain.
The idea behind this is you decarboxylate Nicotinic Acid into Nicotine. But here's why this is stupid; Niacin is actually produced FROM nicotine so all this going back and forth just to get a DAMN SYNTHETIC NICOTINE just makes no sense. It would make more sense to just start from pyridine and NOT decarboxylate nicotinic acid in the first place. Reducing nicotinic acid all the way to pyridine removes this carboxyl group entirely, forcing you to perform additional steps to reintroduce side chains—undoing progress.
Filed NOV. 1, 1947 INVENTOR {Val/er flan/(ml ATTORNEY Patented Feb. 26, 1952 V NICOTINIC ACID PRODUCTION Walter G. Frankenburg, Millersville, Pa., assignor to General Cigar Co., Inc., New York, N. Y., a corporation of New York Application November 1, 1947, Serial No. 783,553 15 Claims. 1 This invention relates to the production of nicotinic acid and, more particularly, to the conversion of nicotine in tobacco to nicotinic acid. Nicotinic acid or niacin has received very considerable attention because of its prominence in the vitamin field. The production of this chemical compound has been the subject of intensive research which has led to the development of several chemical processes centering chiefly around the oxidation of nicotine, quinoline or beta-picoline by strong chemical oxidants like sulfuric and nitric acids. The current largescale production of nicotinic acid in this country relies principally on quinoline and betapicoline derived from coal tar because of price advantage over nicotine'which is laboriously extracted from tobacco. A principal object of this invention is to provide an economical process for converting the nictoine in tobacco to nicotinic acid.
Process for the preparation of nicotinaldehydes Abstract The invention relates to a process for the preparation of nicotinaldehydes by reduction of the corresponding nicotinic acid morpholinamides.
"EP0580374A1 1992-07-23 1994-01-26 Ishihara Sangyo Kaisha, Ltd. Pyridine amides and their salts, processes for their production and pesticidal compositions containing them "
""Kraus, R. E., & Vasilenko, A. V. (1996). "Catalytic hydrogenation of nicotinic acid derivatives to nicotine". Tetrahedron Letters.""
it also might be possible to brew nicotine
Nitrilase-catalyzed hydrolysis of 3-cyanopyridine by means of immobilized Rhodococcus rhodochrous J1 strains leads in quantitative yield to nicotinamide (vitamin B3).The enzyme allows for a more selective synthesis as further hydrolysis of the amide to nicotinic acid is avoided.
Originally posted by Rough Rider
Why don't you synthesize cocaine
That's only slightly more retarded than turning a vitamin made from a plant into a substance you can get from the same plant, but only because of cost of scale economics.
The basic formula for cocaine starts by purchasing or making tropinone, converting the tropinone into 2- carbomethoxytropinone (also known as methyl-tropan-3-one-2-carboxylate), reducing this to ecgonine, and changing that to cocaine. Sounds easy? It really is not very simple, but with Reagan's new drug policies, cracking down on all of the drug smuggling at the borders, this synthetic cocaine may be the source of the future. This synthesis is certainly worth performing with the high prices that cocaine is now commanding. As usual, I will start with the precursors and intermediates leading up to the product.
Cocaine analogs are a lot more promising I think if you can turn a kilogram of cocaine into some funky RC drug that lasts 10 hours like a meth version of crack that's 3x more cardiotoxic
Originally posted by Ghost
That one cocaine analog that's 100x stronger and lasts 10 hours
