---
title: "Preparing aspirin and checking its purity Template | MolDraw"
url: https://www.moldraw.com/templates/setup-aspirin/
description: "Preparing aspirin and checking its purity template: A-level / AP / IB: salicylic acid, ethanoic anhydride and an acid catalyst in a conical flask in a warm…"
lang: en
publisher: Scidart Academy
generated: 2026-10-28
---
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# Preparing aspirin and checking its purity template

![Preparing aspirin and checking its purity template: A-level / AP / IB: salicylic acid, ethanoic anhydride and an acid catalyst in a conical flask in a warm water bath with a thermometer, then Büchner filtration under vacuum; recrystallise and take the melting point.](https://www.moldraw.com/templates/setup-aspirin.webp)

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A-level / AP / IB: salicylic acid, ethanoic anhydride and an acid catalyst in a conical flask in a warm water bath with a thermometer, then Büchner filtration under vacuum; recrystallise and take the melting point.

## What the template shows

- Ethanoylate salicylic acid in a warm water bath, then collect, recrystallise and melt the solid
- Then crystallise
- Add cold water carefully to destroy the excess anhydride, then stand the flask in ice until crystals form
- Water bath
- About 70 °C for 15 min, swirling now and then; thermometer in the water
- Reaction flask
- Salicylic acid, excess ethanoic anhydride and 5 drops of conc. H₂SO₄ or 85% H₃PO₄. Fume cupboard: the anhydride is corrosive
- Büchner funnel
- Filter, wash with a little ice-cold water, suck dry
- Purify and test
- Recrystallise from the minimum hot ethanol and water; dry. Pure aspirin melts sharply at about 135 °C. Iron(III) chloride turns purple if salicylic acid remains
- Pump or water aspirator
- Reaction setup

Drawn with 16 shapes – every one editable in MolDraw.

## Sources

- [Furniss et al., Vogel's Textbook of Practical Organic Chemistry, 5th ed., Longman 1989](https://openlibrary.org/isbn/9780582462366) Textbook
- [Zubrick, The Organic Chem Lab Survival Manual, 10th ed., Wiley 2016](https://openlibrary.org/isbn/9781118875780) Textbook
- [Patrick, An Introduction to Medicinal Chemistry, 6th ed., OUP 2017](https://openlibrary.org/isbn/9780198749691) Textbook

## How to use this template

1. Press **Edit in MolDraw**. The template opens on the canvas of the free MolDraw editor.
2. Change anything: move structures, edit atoms and labels, recolour highlights or delete what you do not need.
3. Add your own structures, arrows and text next to it, or combine several templates on one page.
4. Export the drawing as PNG, SVG or PDF for slides, worksheets, theses and papers.

## Frequently asked questions

### Is the Preparing aspirin and checking its purity template free?

You can preview the Preparing aspirin and checking its purity template here and open and edit it in MolDraw for free. Downloading or exporting it is part of MolDraw Pro, together with the other premium templates.

### Can I edit the Preparing aspirin and checking its purity template?

Yes. It opens as an ordinary MolDraw drawing, so every structure, arrow, label and colour can be changed, and you can add your own content around it.

### Is the chemistry checked?

Every structure is checked with RDKit and every curly arrow passes MolDraw’s electron-flow audit. The sources used are listed on this page.

### Can I edit the glassware?

Yes. Every piece of glassware is a MolDraw apparatus object: move, resize, recolour the liquid or swap a piece and the joints stay connected.

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