NIDA reports that even at its peak of distribution, the content of Molly was probably between 30 percent and 40 percent MDMA, and the rest consisted of cutting agents like lactose. Recent research that investigated the components of Molly seized on the street indicated that about 25 percent of seizures contained at least one of the above adulterants and nearly half of them contained no MDMA at all. The interaction of MDMA and any of the above adulterants can lead to serious complications that can increase the potential for an individual to experience severe brain damage or other serious effects. MDMA is considered extremely dangerous to use, and the United States Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) classifies it as a Schedule I controlled substance.
Molly vs Ecstasy vs MDMA
NIDA is a biomedical research organization and does not provide personalized medical advice, treatment, counseling, or legal consultation. Information provided by NIDA is not a substitute for professional medical care or legal consultation. However, to be diagnosed with a substance use disorder, a person must meet specific diagnostic criteria for continued substance how to take xanax responsibly use despite negative consequences. MDMA first became popular in nightclubs, but people now take it in a wide range of settings.
Legal status
This article will walk you through the process to understand how MDMA is made. MDMA is a synthetic drug that is commonly called ecstasy Because it is a central nervous system stimulant, it enhances sensory perceptions, including that of color, sound, and touch. The solvent is distilled off, leaving the crude MDMA freebase in the flask. It could be further purified by vacuum distillation, but that seems unnecessary. This crude product is dissolved in 80 ml of dry isopropanol (isopropyl alcohol.) Concentrated hydrochloric acid is added a drop at a time until the solution turns slightly acidic. To get it to crash out of solution, 150 ml of dry ether is added.
Contamination With Other Drugs
The key ingredients involved in making MDMA are safrole, methylamine, and MDMA precursor chemicals. Safrole is obtained from certain essential oils, while methylamine can be synthesized using readily available chemicals. Precursor chemicals required for MDMA synthesis include MDP2P, PMK, and BMK. In the illicit manufacturing of MDMA, safrole or its isomer isosafrole is used to create a ketone intermediate called MDP2P, which is then reductively aminated to create MDMA. Many of the chemicals used to make MDMA are closely watched by the DEA.
MDMA Synthesis
In addition, common salvia trip explained synthesis routes involve hazardous chemicals such as formaldehyde, ammonium chloride, and mercury. Manufacturing ecstasy requires combining several toxic chemicals, including formaldehyde, mercury, and ammonium chloride. MDMA is incredibly dangerous to make, and the chemical reactions and exposure to substances like mercury can permanently harm you or even kill you. Safrole is found in various “essential oils”, the most famous of which is sassafras oil, which can contain as much as 90% safrole.
The mercury-aluminum amalgam is created by dissolving mercury chloride in methanol, then adding this solution to a flask of aluminum foil squares. Dissolve 100 mg of HgCl2 (mercury chloride) in 300 ml methanol. This will start the reaction that forms the mercury-aluminum amalgam. The foil will turn gray, then start to release bubbles of hydrogen gas. At this point there’s no turning back; the amalgam will completely decompose over time. That’s because, although aluminum does react readily, it tends to form aluminum oxide.
There are three sections to the list of regulated precursors. List 1 might be thought of as the ‘hot as hell’ list of suspicious precursors, like safrole and psuedoephedrine. By itself (with no evidence that you plan to make illegal drugs) it’s not a crime to have a gallon of sassafras oil or some red phosphorus. If you can find somebody willing to sell you either (within the US) you aren’t doing anything illegal by buying them.
- It is important to remember that the unauthorized production of MDMA is illegal and poses serious health risks.
- The first scientific paper published on MDMA appeared in 1960, when two Polish chemists reported a synthesis route.
- Permits for research uses on humans must be approved by a recognized ethics committee on human research.
- This myth comes from messages broadcast by anti-drug campaigns in the late 1990s/early 2000s.
- It’s part of a wider group of chemicals called phenethylamines, known for their hallucinogenic and stimulant effects.
The crystals are filtered with a coffee filter, heated, acetone-washed, and finally dried to produce the final off-white-colored MDMA hydrochloride crystals. The pure MDMA powder can be further whats in whippets processed with other ingredients and compressed into tablets that range in purity. In this reaction, benzoquinone acts as an oxidizer, adding oxygen across the double bond on the ethyl chain of the phenethylamine backbone.
Like methamphetamine, MDMA exists in two enantiomeric forms (R and S). MDMA is found on the street as the racemic mixture (both R and S enantiomers). MDMA, or 3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine, is a semisynthetic entactogen with stimulating and euphoric properties.