Acetic Acid → Ethyl 4,4-diethoxy-3-oxobutanoate

Participants

Reaction Steps

To a solution of ethyl diethoxyacetate (24.5 g) in ethyl acetate (12.5 g), metallic sodium (4.2 g) was added, and the resultant mixture was refluxed for about 1.5 hours. The reaction mixture was made acidic with 50% acetic acid and extracted with ether. After removal of the ether from the extract by distillation, the residue was subjected to fractional distillation to give ethyl diethoxyacetoacetate (13.6 g) as a colorless, transparent oil boiling at 84° C./4 mmHg.

Provenance & Evidence