Acetic Anhydride → 2-Methyl-5-nitrophenyl acetate

Participants

Reaction Steps

Acetic anhydride (1.9 ml, 20.3 mmol) was added to a mixture of 2-methyl-5-nitrophenol (2.5 g, 16.3 mmol) and 1M aqueous sodium hydroxide (24.5 ml) at ambient temperature. The mixture was stirred for 40 minutes, the solid was removed by filtration and the filtrate extracted with ethyl acetate. The organic layers were combined, washed with an aqueous saturated sodium chloride solution, dried (MgSO4) and evaporated to yield 2-acetoxy-4-nitrotoluene (3.1 g, 100%). A mixture of this material (3.1 g, 15.9 mmol) and 10% palladium-on-charcoal catalyst (0.12 g) in ethyl acetate (50 ml) was stirred at ambient temperature under an atmosphere of hydrogen for 2 hours. The catalyst was removed by filtration and the filtrate evaporated to give 3-acetoxy-4-methylaniline (2.45 g, 94%).

Provenance & Evidence