Sulfuric Acid → Methyl 2-methyl-5-nitrobenzoate

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Reaction Steps

300 μl of concentrated sulfuric acid is added to a suspension of 2 g of 2-methyl-5-nitrobenzoic acid in 7 ml of methanol. It is refluxed for 6 hours. Then, the reaction mixture is diluted with ethyl acetate and poured into saturated sodium bicarbonate solution. The phases are separated, and the aqueous phase is extracted with ethyl acetate. The combined organic phases are then washed with saturated sodium chloride solution, dried on sodium sulfate, and concentrated by evaporation in a vacuum. The crude product that is obtained is incorporated without purification into the next step.

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