Water → 3-(3,4-Dimethoxyphenyl)acrylonitrile

Participants

Reaction Conditions

Reaction Steps

7 g of 3,4-dimethoxybenzaldehyde (42.1 mmoles) are dissolved in 84 mL of THF and the solution is cooled to 0° C. 8.2 g of diethyl cyanomethyl phosphonate (7.5 mL, 46.3 mmoles, 1.1 eq.) and subsequently 5.2 g of potassium tert-butoxide (46.3 mmoles, 1.1 eq.) are added little by little. The mixture is stirred for one hour at 0° C. and then overnight at ambient temperature. The reaction mixture is hydrolysed using 175 mL of water and extracted twice with dichloromethane. The organic phases are collected and the solvent is evaporated off under reduced pressure to yield 7.69 g of the title product in the form of a beige solid.

Provenance & Evidence