Cesium carbonate → 4-(2-Cyclopropyl-2-oxoethoxy)-2,6-dimethylbenzonitrile

Participants

Reaction Steps

Caesium carbonate (30.7 g, 111.16 mmol) was added to a solution of 4-hydroxy-2,6-dimethylbenzonitrile (15.27 g, 101.89 mmol), in acetone (377 ml). Then 2-bromo-1-cyclopropylethanone (15.1 g, 62.6 mmol), in acetone (100 ml), was added dropwise, over 5 minutes, to the resulting suspension and the reaction mixture was heated at reflux for 1.5 hours. It was then concentrated under reduced pressure and the residue was partitioned between an aqueous solution of potassium carbonate and dichloromethane. The organic layer was separated and washed with brine, dried over magnesium sulphate, filtered and then concentrated under reduced pressure. The crude product was purified by flash chromatography on silica gel eluting with dichloromethane:pentane (50:50 to 80:20, by volume) to provide the title compound (13.5 g, 64%) as a solid.

Provenance & Evidence