Methanol → Methyl 4-methyl-3-(trifluoromethyl)benzoate

Participants

Reaction Steps

A reactor is charged with 1 g (4.9 mmol) of 3-(trifluoromethyl)-4-methylbenzoic acid in 10 ml methanol in the presence of a catalytic amount of sulphuric acid. The mixture is heated for 6 hours at reflux. The solvent is then evaporated under reduced pressure and 100 ml of a saturated sodium bicarbonate solution is added to the mixture. The solution is extracted by 3*30 ml ethyl acetate. The organic phases are combined, dried on sodium sulphate and evaporated under reduced pressure to give the expected product (1 g, 95%).

Provenance & Evidence