A study on the decomposition of some N,N-dialkyldithiocarbamic acids

A study of the decomposition of several N,N-dialkyldithiocarbamic (DTC) acids has been made in aqueous solutions and mixed solvents of various composition, and a mechanism for the decomposition has been suggested. It is concluded from polarographic and kinetic (decomposition of DTC acids) studies, spectral properties of the DTC acids, and acid-base titrimetric studies of the dithiocarbamates that these reagents are monobasic with the sulfur atom of the DTC undergoing protonation. Also, studies on the evaluation of the acid dissociation constants from decomposition rate constants have been made. The primary and secondary salt effects on the decomposition of the DTC acids at low and high pH values have been discussed. The results of studies of the decomposition of DTC acids in water-alcohol mixtures, in aqueous solutions as a function of pH and ionic strength, and in deuterium oxide are consistent with the mechanism for decomposition suggested in this thesis. In addition to studies on the decomposition of DTC acids, methods for determining the DTC and water content in several DTC salts are described and compared. Some studies on solvent extraction of the DTC acids are also presented and discussed.