Formaldehyde → 3,4-Dihydro-6-methoxy-2-methylene-1(2h)-naphthalenone

Participants

Reaction Steps

A mixture of 6-methoxytetralone (29.24 g, 165.9 mmol), paraformaldehyde (22.4 g, 746.6 mmol) and N-methylanilinium trifluoroactate (55 g, 248.9 mmol) in 250 mL THF was refluxed for 4 hours and allowed to come to room temperature. To this was added ether (250 mL) with stirring and the mixture was decanted to remove the gummy precipitate. The supernatant was washed with sat. NaHCO3, the oganic layer was dried (MgSO4) and concentrated. The residue was redissolved in ether, filtered through celite and concentrated to afford the title compound as a thick yellow oil.

Provenance & Evidence