Sodium Acetate → Acetic acid 2-(2-ethoxy-naphthalen-1-yl)-2-oxo-ethyl ester

A mixture of 2-bromo-1-(2-ethoxy-naphthalen-1-yl)-ethanone (7.0 g), sodium acetate (2.0 g) and N,N-dimethylformamide (80 mL) was heated at 80° C. for 1.5 hours. After cooling to room temperature the N,N-dimethylformamide was removed under reduced pressure and the resulting residue was partitioned between dichloromethane (60 mL) and water (60 mL). The organic phase was washed with water (60 mL), brine (60 mL), dried over magnesium sulfate, filtered and the solvent removed under reduced pressure to afford acetic acid 2-(2-ethoxy-naphthalen-1-yl)-2-oxo-ethyl ester (6.1 g, 94%) as dark red oil. 1H NMR (CDCl3): 1.45 (3H, t, J=7.0 Hz), 2.2 (3H, s), 4.2 (2H, q, J=7.0 Hz), 5.15 (2H, s), 7.2 (1H, d, J=9.4 Hz), 7.35 (1H, m), 7.45 (1H, m), 7.75 (1H, d, J=8.1 Hz), 7.85 (2H, m).