o-Dianisidine

Template:Chembox o-Dianisidine is an organic compound with the formula [(CH₃O)(H₂N)C₆H₃]₂. A colorless or white solid, it is a bifunctional compound derived via the benzidine rearrangement from o-anisidine.

o-Dianisidine is a precursor to some azo dyes by formation of the bis(diazonium) derivative, which is coupled to diverse aromatic compounds. Some commercial dyes derived from o-dianisidine include C. I. Direct Blue 1, 15, 22, 84, and 98.

o-Dianisidine is also used in assaying activity of peroxidase in lab. The general reaction of a peroxidase is as follows.

$\mathrm{R}\mathrm{O}\mathrm{O}\mathrm{R}{\phantom{A}}^{\prime }+\stackrel{\genfrac{}{}{0ex}{}{\mathrm{e}\mathrm{l}\mathrm{e}\mathrm{c}\mathrm{t}\mathrm{r}\mathrm{o}\mathrm{n}}{\mathrm{d}\mathrm{o}\mathrm{n}\mathrm{o}\mathrm{r}}}{2\mathrm{e}{\phantom{A}}^{-}}+2\mathrm{H}{\phantom{A}}^{+}\stackrel{\mathrm{P}\mathrm{e}\mathrm{r}\mathrm{o}\mathrm{x}\mathrm{i}\mathrm{d}\mathrm{a}\mathrm{s}\mathrm{e}}{\to }\text{ROH}+\mathrm{R}{\phantom{A}}^{\prime }\mathrm{O}\mathrm{H}$

Where the ROOR' can be hydrogen peroxide, and the electron donor be o-dianisidine.

Direct Blue 1 is commercial dye, a derivative of o-dianisidine.

Safety

The manufacture and degradation of o-dianisidine, like other benzidene derivatives, has attracted regulatory attention. It is also used as a reagent in biochemistry in testing for peroxides.