I noticed that cocaine and ecstacy are referred to as cocaine hydrochloride and MDMA hydrochloride. I have allergy medication in my cabinet that is diphenhydramine hydrochloride.
What’s a hydrochloride and why is it part of a lot of drugs?
In: Chemistry
It means that the compound (the drug, in this case) has a part of the molecule that can accept a hydrogen ion (a proton) and become positively charged. Typically, this is an amino group, which is a nitrogen bonded to three other atoms. Look up the chemical structure of diphenhydramine, and you will see this. When the amino group accepts this proton, the nitrogen atom becomes charged with a +1 charge. It needs a negative ion to go with it (a counterion), which in this case is the chloride ion, Cl-. This makes the molecule more soluble in water. You can make a hydrochloride by stirring the non-charged compound with a weak hydrochloric acid solution.
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