Potassium Carbonate → Ethyl 2-(2'-bromo-4'-fluorophenoxy)propionate

Participants

Reaction Steps

A mixture of 15 gm (78.5 mMol) 2-bromo-4-fluorophenol, 11.2 mL (86.4 mMol) ethyl 2-bromopropionate, and 13 gm (94.2 mMol) potassium carbonate was heated at reflux for 3 hours. At this point 0.1 gm potassium iodide were added and reflux continued for another 2 hours. The reaction mixture was partitioned between water and ethyl acetate. The phases were separated and the aqueous phase was extracted well with ethyl acetate. The organic phases were combined, washed with saturated aqueous sodium chloride, dried over sodium sulfate, and concentrated under reduced pressure. The residue was subjected to silica gel chromatography, eluting with hexane containing 5% ethyl acetate. Fractions containing product were combined and concentrated under reduced pressure to provide 19.8 gm (87%) of the desired compound as a clear oil.

Provenance & Evidence