Sodium Cyanide → 2,6-Diethyl-4-methylphenylacetonitrile

In a mixture of 50 g of water and 99 g of acetonitrile was dissolved 27.98 g of sodium cyanide. To this mixture, a solution of 157.18 g of 2,6-diethyl-4-methylbenzyl chloride (GC-area: 71%) in acetonitrile (293 g) was added dropwise at 75° C. over 2.5 hours. This mixture was stirred at 75° C. for 3 hours. To the reaction mixture was added 99 g of water, and the mixture was separated. The organic layer was concentrated. To the residue were added 99 g of water and 198 g of hexane and the mixture was separated. The organic layer was washed with 99 g of an aqueous saturated sodium chloride solution, dried over anhydrous magnesium sulfate and then concentrated to obtain 123.46 g of 2,6-diethyl-4-methylphenylacetonitrile (GC-area: 71%) as a brown oil.