Chloroacetic Acid → p-Tolyl methyl sulfone

Participants

Reaction Conditions

Reaction Steps

176.4 g of sodium sulfite and 226 g of sodium bicarbonate were dissolved in 1800 ml of water and cooled down to 15° C. 244 g of p-toluenesulfonyl chloride were added at that temperature with thorough stirring. The mixture was additionally stirred for 3 hours at 15° C. and overnight at room temperature. It was then heated to 40° C. and a solution of 175 g of the sodium salt of chloroacetic acid in 400 ml of water was added. The reaction mixture was stirred under reflux for 24 hours. After cooling down to 5°-10° C. the precipitated product was filtered off with suction and dried at 50° C. under reduced pressure, leaving 192.5 g of 4-methylsulfonyltoluene (melting point 83°-86° C).

Provenance & Evidence