Deschloro-N-ethyl-ketamine hydrochloride
[CAS 4551-92-2]

Identification

• Classification: Organic raw materials >> Ketone compound
• Name: Deschloro-N-ethyl-ketamine hydrochloride
• Synonyms: 2-(ethylamino)-2-phenylcyclohexan-1-one;hydrochloride
• Molecular Formula: C₁₄H₂₀ClNO
• Molecular Weight: 253.77
• CAS Registry Number: 4551-92-2
• SMILES: CCNC1(CCCCC1=O)C2=CC=CC=C2.Cl

Properties

• Solubility: 5 mg/ml (DMF)

Safety Data

• Hazard Symbols: GHS07 Warning
• Risk Statements: H302+H312+H332
• Safety Statements: P261-P264-P270-P271-P280-P301+P312-P302+P352-P304+P340-P321-P330-P362+P364-P501

chemBlink Chemical Story

A forensic reference substance has a different role from a medicine with an established clinical use. Deschloro-N-ethyl-ketamine hydrochloride, CAS 4551-92-2, is a useful example. It is the hydrochloride salt of the arylcyclohexylamine commonly discussed as 2-oxo-PCE or O-PCE. Reference materials allow laboratories to compare an unknown sample with a substance whose identity has been characterized.

The structural name identifies two changes relative to ketamine: the aromatic chlorine is absent, and the nitrogen substituent is ethyl rather than methyl. The cyclohexanone carbonyl remains. These details distinguish it from ketamine and from other compounds described with similar abbreviations. Structural resemblance can guide the choice of analytical methods, but it cannot establish that two substances have identical pharmacology or clinical safety.

Salt identity adds another layer. The listed product includes hydrochloride, whereas a free-base structure does not include the same formula mass or counterion. In mass spectrometry, the ion used to identify the organic component need not retain chloride. Consequently, detecting the characteristic organic ion is not by itself a complete determination of the original solid's salt composition. The reference material and the analytical question must be matched.

The substance became relevant to forensic laboratories through reports of its appearance in real samples. A study of Hong Kong drug seizures and drug-driving cases documented 2-oxo-PCE during 2017-2018. A separate clinical investigation reported a cluster of associated acute poisonings in 2017. These studies connect chemical identification with a practical need for toxicological investigation, without making the material an approved substitute for ketamine.

Identification in this setting involves several kinds of evidence. Chromatographic behavior helps distinguish components of a mixture. A mass spectrum provides information about ions and fragmentation. Comparison with an appropriate reference helps test whether those observations are consistent with the proposed substance. A result is strongest when the pieces agree rather than when an abbreviation or a single signal is treated as conclusive.

The story of this hydrochloride is therefore one of analytical preparedness. Closely related structures can enter samples that laboratories already examine, while falling outside older assumptions about what those samples contain. A precisely identified reference supports method development and reliable communication. It does not, on its own, establish predictable effects in people or transfer the medical evidence for a better-known related compound to this one.

References:
1. Cayman Chemical. deschloro-N-ethyl-Ketamine (hydrochloride), CAS 4551-92-2; product 14105. https://www.caymanchem.com/product/14105/deschloro-n-ethyl-ketamine-hydrochloride
2. The Emergence of Deschloro-N-ethyl-ketamine, a Ketamine Analog, in Drug Seizures and Drug Driving Cases in Hong Kong. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32364605/
3. Tang MHY et al. Cluster of acute poisonings associated with an emerging ketamine analogue, 2-oxo-PCE. Forensic Sci Int. 2018. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30081327/

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