Hydrochloric Acid → 2,4-Dioxo-4-phenyl-butyric acid ethyl ester

Participants

Reaction Conditions

Reaction Steps

Diethyl oxalate (7.23 g, 49.47 mmol) was added to a stirred solution of 1-phenyl-ethanone (5.0 g, 41.6 mmol) in DMF (40 mL) at room temperature. The reaction mixture was cooled to 0° C. and sodium hydride (60% dispersion in oil, 2.0 g, 83.3 mmol) was added. The resulting mixture was maintained at 0° C. for 30 minutes, stirred for a further hour at room temperature and then slowly heated to 50° C. and stirred for a further 30 minutes. Chilled water was then added, the mixture was acidified with 2.4 N HCl and the resulting precipitate was filtered to afford 2,4-dioxo-4-phenyl-butyric acid ethyl ester in 42.6% yield. LC-MS purity: 85.2%.

Provenance & Evidence