Organic Synthesis of Aspirin

Conclusion
Aspirin, also known as acetylsalicylic acid, is derived from an acid catalyzed reaction between salicylic acid and acetic anhydride. This crude product has impurities such as unreacted salicylic acid, acetic acid, and sulfuric acid that need to be separated from the pure aspirin. Recrystallization is a process which allows pure aspirin to precipitate out of this crude product. In ideal circumstances, the theoretical yield should be 1.935 grams of aspirin. Yet the actual yield was only 1.141 grams of aspirin. This gives a low percentage yield of only 58.41%. Although the method used in the lab works, it is in inefficient process of producing pure aspirin. This is due most likely to the many errors, most of which are solvable, that can occur during the procedures.
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