Sodium Chloride → 4-(Trifluoromethoxy)benzalmalononitrile

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Reaction Steps

First, 10.0 g of 4-(trifluoromethoxy)benzaldehyde and 3.50 g of malononitrile were dissolved in 60 ml of 70% (w/w) aqueous ethanol, to which a catalytic amount of benzyltrimethylammonium hydroxide was added, and the mixture was stirred at room temperature overnight. Then, a saturated aqueous sodium chloride solution was added to the reaction mixture, which was extracted with ethyl acetate. The organic layer was washed with a saturated aqueous sodium chloride solution, dried over anhydrous magnesium sulfate, and then concentrated under reduced pressure. The residue was recrystallized from t-butyl methyl ether and hexane to give 9.24 g of (4-(trifluoromethoxy)benzylidene)malononitrile.

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