2-Chloroethanol → 2-Chloroethyl 2-hydroxypropanoate

Participants

Reaction Steps

Lactic acid (74 mL of an 85% aqueous solution, 0.84 mol) and freshly distilled 2-chloroethanol (670 mL, 10.0 mol) were refluxed with 400 mL of toluene and 0.4 mL of conc. H2SO4 until one equivalent of H2O was collected in a Dean-Stark trap. The reaction mixture was cooled to room temperature, diluted with ethyl ether, and washed with a NaHCO3 /NaCl solution. The organic phase was dried with MgSO4, solvent was removed under reduced pressure, and the residue was distilled at 10 mm Hg. A fraction recovered at 95°-100° C./10 mm Hg was redistilled to give 2-chloroethyl lactate as a clear colorless liquid (76.7 g, 60%): b.p. 95° C./10 mm Hg; 1H NMR δ1.46 (d, 3H, J=6.9 Hz), δ2.95 (bs, 1H), δ3.72 (t, 2H, J=5.6 Hz), δ4.35 (q, 1H, J=6.9 Hz), δ4.44 (m, 2H); 13C NMR 20.4, 41.2, 64.8, 66.8, 175.2 ppm; HRMS calcd for C4H5ClO3Tms (M-CH3) 209.0401, obsd 209.0392.

Provenance & Evidence