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Sigma-Aldrich

n-Butyllithium solution

2.0 M in cyclohexane

Synonym(s):

n-BuLi, Butyl lithium, Butyllithium solution, Lithium-1-butanide

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About This Item

Linear Formula:
CH3(CH2)3Li
CAS Number:
Molecular Weight:
64.06
Beilstein:
1209227
MDL number:
UNSPSC Code:
12352103
PubChem Substance ID:
NACRES:
NA.22

form

liquid

Quality Level

concentration

2.0 M in cyclohexane

bp

80 °C

density

0.775 g/mL at 25 °C

storage temp.

2-8°C

SMILES string

[Li]CCCC

InChI

1S/C4H9.Li/c1-3-4-2;/h1,3-4H2,2H3;

InChI key

MZRVEZGGRBJDDB-UHFFFAOYSA-N

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General description

n-Butyllithium (n-BuLi) is an organolithium reagent widely used as a strong base (superbase) in organic synthesis for the preparation of various chemical intermediates. It is also used as a reagent for lithium-halogen exchange and lithium-metal transmetalation reactions. n-BuLi is capable of lithiating carbon acids.

Application

n-Butyllithium (2.0 M in cyclohexane) can be used as:      
  • A polymerization initiator to synthesize polystyrenes by anionic polymerization of styrene.      
  • A strong base in the diastereoselective alkylation reactions.
  • A reagent to synthesize 2-benzoylpyrroles by reacting benzaldehydes with di(1H-pyrrol-1-yl)zirconium(IV) chloride complex.

Packaging

The 25 mL Sure/Seal bottle is recommended as a single-use bottle. Repeated punctures will likely result in decreased performance of product.

Legal Information

Sure/Seal is a trademark of Sigma-Aldrich Co. LLC

Signal Word

Danger

Hazard Classifications

Aquatic Acute 1 - Aquatic Chronic 1 - Asp. Tox. 1 - Eye Dam. 1 - Flam. Liq. 2 - Skin Corr. 1B - STOT SE 3 - Water-react 1

Target Organs

Central nervous system

Supplementary Hazards

Storage Class Code

4.3 - Hazardous materials which set free flammable gases upon contact with water

WGK

WGK 2

Flash Point(F)

-0.4 °F - closed cup

Flash Point(C)

-18 °C - closed cup

Personal Protective Equipment

dust mask type N95 (US), Eyeshields, Gloves

Certificates of Analysis (COA)

Search for Certificates of Analysis (COA) by entering the products Lot/Batch Number. Lot and Batch Numbers can be found on a product’s label following the words ‘Lot’ or ‘Batch’.

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High-field proton NMR study of the aggregation and complexation of n-butyllithium in tetrahydrofuran.
McGarrity JF and Ogle CA.
Journal of the American Chemical Society, 107(7), 1805-1810 (1985)
Comparison of the synthetic utility of n-butyllithium and lithium diisopropylamide in the metalations of N, N-dialkyltoluamides.
Ludt RE, et al
The Journal of Organic Chemistry, 38(9), 1668-1674 (1973)
Lithium intercalation via n-butyllithium of the layered transition metal dichalcogenides.
Dines MB.
Materials Research Bulletin, 10(4), 287-291 (1975)
Arene-metal complexes. 13. Reaction of substituted (benzene) tricarbonylchromium complexes with n-butyllithium.
Card RJ and Trahanovsky WS.
The Journal of Organic Chemistry, 45(13), 2560-2566 (1980)
Michael A Tarselli et al.
Organic letters, 11(20), 4596-4599 (2009-10-09)
A procedure for the coupling of aliphatic imines with allylic and allenic alkoxides is described. The success of these studies was enabled by a unique reactivity profile of Ti(IV) isopropoxide/n-BuLi compared to well-known Ti(IV) isopropoxide/RMgX systems.

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