Benzyl Alcohol → 2-(Benzyloxy)-5-fluorobenzonitrile

Participants

Reaction Conditions

Reaction Steps

In a 12 L, 4-neck round bottom flask equipped with a mechanic stirrer and temperature probe, a suspension of sodium hydride (74 g, 1.82 mol) in DMF (1.95 L) was added benzyl alcohol (142 g, 1.3 mol) through a dropping funnel slowly over 30 minutes in an ice bath under nitrogen. The mixture was stirred in an ice bath (0° C.) for 120 minutes, a solution of 2,5-difluorobenzonitrile (180 g, 1.3 mol) in DMF (650 mL) was added through a dropping funnel over 35 minutes. The resulting mixture was warmed up to room temperature. After 2 hours, the mixture was cooled in an ice bath (4° C.) and quenched with saturated NH4Cl (130 mL) followed by the addition of water (2.6 L×3). The slurry was stirred at room temperature overnight and the precipitate was filtered and washed with water (650 mL×3). The solid was dried in vacuum for 2 days to give 292 g (99.3%) of the desired compound. 1H NMR (400 MHz, DMSO-d6) δ 7.78 (dd, 1H, J=3.2 Hz, J=8.2 Hz), 7.5-7.76 (m, 1H), 7.35-7.48 (m, 6H), 5.28 (s, 2H).

Provenance & Evidence