(CAS NO.: ), with other names as , diphenyl-, could be produced through the following synthetic routes.

In a 1-l. round-bottomed flask fitted with a reflux condenser are placed 900 g. of 3 per cent sodium amalgam, 180 g. (1.15 moles) of bromobenzene, 200 cc. of dry toluene or dry xylene, and 10 cc. of ethyl acetate. The mixture is refluxed with frequent shaking for twelve hours in an oil bath at 130°.

The mixture is transferred (Hood) while still hot to a fluted filter paper in a 20-cm. glass funnel, leaving behind as much mercury as possible. The funnel is made part of a special extraction apparatus as described on p. 375. The diphenylmercury is extracted with 600 cc. of boiling benzene for about ten hours.

The solution is distilled under reduced pressure on an oil bath, the temperature of which is raised to 110° near the end of the distillation. The solid residue left in the flask after removal of the solvent is taken out and washed until nearly white with 95 per cent alcohol which has been cooled in an ice bath. This requires about four washings of 50 cc. of alcohol each. The yield is 65–75 g. (32–37 per cent of the theoretical amount). The melting point is 121–123°.