Indane or indan is a hydrocarbon

Hydrocarbon

In organic chemistry, a hydrocarbon is an organic compound consisting entirely of hydrogen and carbon. Hydrocarbons from which one hydrogen atom has been removed are functional groups, called hydrocarbyls....

 petrochemical compound.

Derivatives

Derivatives include compounds such as 1-methyl-indane and 2-methyl-indane (where one methyl group is attached to the five carbon ring), 4-methyl-indane and 5-methyl-indane (where one methyl group is attached to the benzene ring), various dimethyl-indanes, and various pharmaceutical derivatives. Other derivatives can be obtained indirectly, e.g. the reaction of diethyl phthalate

Diethyl phthalate

Diethyl phthalate is a phthalate ester, namely the diethyl ester of phthalic acid. It is a clear substance that is liquid at room temperature and which does not occur in nature. It has a faint, disagreeable odor and can be transferred from the plastics that contain it...

 with ethyl acetate

Ethyl acetate

Ethyl acetate is the organic compound with the formula CH3COOCH2CH3. This colorless liquid has a characteristic sweet smell and is used in glues, nail polish removers, and cigarettes...

, using metallic sodium

Sodium

Sodium is a chemical element with the symbol Na and atomic number 11. It is a soft, silvery-white, highly reactive metal and is a member of the alkali metals; its only stable isotope is 23Na. It is an abundant element that exists in numerous minerals, most commonly as sodium chloride...

 and ethanol

Ethanol

Ethanol, also called ethyl alcohol, pure alcohol, grain alcohol, or drinking alcohol, is a volatile, flammable, colorless liquid. It is a psychoactive drug and one of the oldest recreational drugs. Best known as the type of alcohol found in alcoholic beverages, it is also used in thermometers, as a...

 as a catalyst. The reaction yields indanedione ethyl ester, which can react with the sodium ions yielding a salt. This can be reversed by adding an aqueous solution of hydrochloric acid

Hydrochloric acid

Hydrochloric acid is a solution of hydrogen chloride in water, that is a highly corrosive, strong mineral acid with many industrial uses. It is found naturally in gastric acid....

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Indane can also be converted in a catalytic reactor to other aromatics such as xylene

Xylene

Xylene encompasses three isomers of dimethylbenzene. The isomers are distinguished by the designations ortho- , meta- , and para- , which specify to which carbon atoms the two methyl groups are attached...

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Another derivative is 1,3-indandione

1,3-Indandione

1,3-indandione is an aromatic trans-fixed β-diketone, in standard conditions it is referred to in different sources as colourless or yellowish, green or yellow solid...

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External links

• Safety data for indane (indan) from

Physical and Theoretical Chemistry Laboratory at Oxford University.