A large number of the dyes prepared from coal tar are called azo colours, such for instance are the Biebrich and Croceine scarlets and oranges, Naphthol black, Congo red, etc.,
just to name a few. The preparation of these is about the simplest operation of colour chemistry, and consists in taking as the base an amido compound as the chemist calls such. These amido compounds, of which aniline, toluidine, benzidine, naphthylamine are familiar examples, are characterised by containing the molecular group NH2, which radicle is built up of the two elements nitrogen and hydrogen. All compounds which contain this group are basic in character and combine with acids to form well-defined salts. When these amido bodies are treated with sodium nitrite and hydrochloric acid they undergo a chemical change, the feature of which is that the nitrogen atoms present in the amido compound and in the nitrite unite together and a new compound is produced which is called a diazo compound, and the operation is called "diazotisation".
For example when paranitroaniline is subjected to this reaction it undergoes a change indicated in the chemical equation:—
C6H4NO2NH2, + NaNO2, + 2HCl = Paranitroaniline, Sodium nitrite, Hydrochloric acid.
C6H4NO2N: NCl + NaCl + 2H20 = Paranitro benzene Sodium chloride, Water, diazo chloride.
The above, put into words, means that when paranitroaniline is dissolved with hydrochloric acid and treated with nitrite of soda it forms diazonitro benzene chloride, sodium chloride and water. Now the diazo compounds are rather unstable bodies, but they have a great affinity for other compounds, such as naphthol, phenylene diamine, phenol, and combine easily with them when brought into contact with them. The new compounds thus made form the dye-stuffs of commerce.
The azo dyes contain the characteristic group of two
nitrogen atoms shown in the formula N: N. In dealing with the production of colours direct on the fibre this subject will be elaborated more fully.
Now many of the direct dyes, Diamine blacks, Diamine cutch, Primuline, Diazo brown, Zambesi blues, browns, etc., contain amido groups, by reason of having been made from such bodies as phenylene diamine, amido naphthol, toluidine, etc., and it has been found that when dyed on the fibre they are capable of being diazotised by passing the dyed fibre into a bath of sodium nitrite acidified with hydrochloric acid, and if then they are placed into a bath containing such a body as beta-naphthol, phenylene diamine, etc., new compounds or dyes are produced, which are characterised by being insoluble in water, and therefore as formed on the fibre in the manner indicated are very fast to washing, soaping and similar agencies.
Often the new or developed dye formed on the fibre differs markedly in colour from the original dye. Perhaps in no case is this more strongly shown than with Primuline. The original colour is a greenish yellow, but by using various developers, as they are called, a great variety of shade can be got, as shown in this table.