Abstract
Higher aliphatic amine or its mineral acid salt when treated with ethylene oxide reacts to produce the quaternary ammonium hydroxide or quaternary ammonium salt in the presence of water. The rate of the reaction depends on the steric effect more than the base strength of amine. The reaction of amine-salt and ethylene oxide involves two reaction mechanisms which depend on the steric effect of amine.
In the reaction of HCl-salt, one course is (1); ethylene oxide reacts with amine, and the other is (2); ammonium hydroxide produced from ethylene oxide and amine reacts with ethylene chlorohydrin from ethylene oxide and HCl.
