chemistry

Tert-Butylthiol

Tert-Butylthiol is a chemistry topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Tert-Butylthiol rather than just read about it. In short: tert-Butylthiol, also known as tert-butyl mercaptan (TBM), and abbreviated t-BuSH, is an organosulfur compound with the formula (CH3)3CSH. This thiol has a strong odor.

Key takeaways

Tert-Butylthiol belongs to chemistry; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Tert-Butylthiol to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Tert-Butylthiol from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

tert-Butylthiol, also known as tert-butyl mercaptan (TBM), and abbreviated t-BuSH, is an organosulfur compound with the formula (CH3)3CSH. This thiol has a strong odor. It is considered a flavoring agent.

Preparation tert-Butylthiol was first prepared in 1890 by Leonard Dobbin by the reaction of zinc sulfide and t-butyl chloride. The compound was later prepared by the reaction of the Grignard reagent, t-BuMgCl, with sulfur to give the corresponding thiolate, followed by hydrolysis. This preparation is shown below:

t-BuMgCl + S → t-BuSMgCl t-BuSMgCl + H2O → t-BuSH + Mg(OH)Cl It is made industrially by the reaction of isobutylene with hydrogen sulfide over a clay (silica alumina) catalyst.

Reactions tert-Butylthiol is deprotonated by lithium hydride in an aprotic solvent such as hexamethylphosphoramide (HMPA). The resulting lithium thiolate salt has been used as demethylating reagent. For example, treatment with 7-methylguanosine gives guanosine. Other N-methylated nucleosides in tRNA are not demethylated by this reagent. tert-Butylthiol reacts with thallium(I) ethoxide to give the thallium thiolate:

(CH3)3CSH + CH3CH2O−Tl+ → (CH3)3CS−Tl+ + CH3CH2OH This thallium thiolate can be used to convert acyl chlorides to the thioester:

(CH3)3CS−Tl+ + RCOCl → RCOSC(CH3)3 + TlCl (CH3)3CSLi reacts with MoCl4 with to give the tetrathiolate complex:

MoCl4 + 4 (CH3)3CSLi → ((CH3)3CS)4Mo + 4 LiCl

Commercial use and occurrence tert-Butylthiol is the main ingredient in many gas odorant blends. It is always utilized as a blend of other compounds, typically dimethyl sulfide, methyl ethyl sulfide, tetrahydrothiophene or other mercaptans such as isopropyl mercaptan, sec-butyl mercaptan and/or n-butyl mercaptan, due to its rather high melting point of −0.5 °C (31.1 °F). These blends are used only with natural gas and not propane, as the boiling points of these blends and propane are quite different. Because propane is delivered as a liquid and vaporizes to gas when it is delivered to the appliance, the vapor liquid equilibrium would substantially reduce the amount of odorant blend in the vapor.

Food and flavor tert-Butylthiol had been listed on the European Food Safety Authority (FL-no: 12.174) as a flavor additive. There is no indication of what flavor(s) it may have been used in. It has been removed from this list. tert-Butylthiol is a very minor component of cooked potatoes.

Safety The threshold limit value (TLV) is 0.5 ppm. tert-butylthiol has an odor threshold of <0.33 ppb.

See also Butanethiol (butyl mercaptan) Ethanethiol (ethyl mercaptan)

References

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Tert-Butylthiol

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Tert-Butylthiol claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In chemistry, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Tert-Butylthiol before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Tert-Butylthiol ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Tert-Butylthiol

In research: Tert-Butylthiol appears in chemistry research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Tert-Butylthiol in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Tert-Butylthiol is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Alkanethiols, Foul-smelling chemicals, Tert-butyl compounds, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Tert-Butylthiol outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

Ask Teacher Smith questions about this articleOpens your AI tutor with a question about “Tert-Butylthiol” →

Affiliate

Preply — study more efficiently by working with a personal tutor. 50% off.

How to study Tert-Butylthiol in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Tert-Butylthiol means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Tert-Butylthiol out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Tert-Butylthiol in simple terms?

tert-Butylthiol, also known as tert-butyl mercaptan (TBM), and abbreviated t-BuSH, is an organosulfur compound with the formula (CH3)3CSH. This thiol has a strong odor.

Why does Tert-Butylthiol matter?

Because it connects several chemistry ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Tert-Butylthiol?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Tert-Butylthiol.