Ammonia → Bupivacaine (USAN:INN:BAN)

Participants

Reaction Steps

A stirred mixture of (S)-bupivacaine (0.140 g, 0.49 mmol) and propanoic acid (3.5 ml) was heated to reflux under a nitrogen atmosphere for 7 hours. The resulting solution was cooled and then poured into a mixture of distilled water (20 ml) and ethyl acetate (20 ml). Aqueous ammonia (28% w/v) was added until the pH of the aqueous layer was 10. The organic layer was separated and the aqueous layer extracted with ethyl acetate (20 ml). The combined organic extracts were washed with distilled water (20 ml), dried (MgSO4) and concentrated under reduced pressure to give racemic bupivacaine (0.137 g, 98%). ##STR1##

Provenance & Evidence