Hydrochloric Acid → 4-(2-Carboxyethoxy)-2-methylbenzaldehyde

Participants

Reaction Steps

To a mixture of 4-hydroxy-2-methylbenzaldehyde (5 g) and potassium tert-butoxide (4.12 g) in tetrahydrofuran (60 mL) was added β-propiolactone (4.6 mL), and the mixture was stirred at room temperature for 4 hours. The reaction mixture was poured into 1 mol/L hydrochloric acid, and the resulting mixture was extracted with ethyl acetate. The extract was washed with water and brine, and dried over anhydrous sodium sulfate. The solvent was removed under reduced pressure. The residue was suspended in ethyl acetate (20 mL)—n-hexane (100 mL). The insoluble material was collected by filtration, and washed with n-hexane and dried under reduced pressure to give the title compound (7.2 g).

Provenance & Evidence