Water → 5-Ethynyl-2-methylaniline

Participants

Reaction Steps

A solution of 4-(3-amino-4-methylphenyl)-2-methylbut-3-yn-2-ol (509 mg, 2.7 mmol) in toluene (2 mL) was treated with potassium hydroxide (1.0 g, 18 mmol) at reflux for 20 min. After cooling to rt, water and ether were added, and the layers were partitioned. The organic phase was acidified with 4 N hydrochloric acid in dioxane (700 μL). The volatile materials were removed in vacuo providing a yellow/brown solid. The solid was taken up in ether and washed with saturated sodium bicarbonate. The organic phase was dried over magnesium sulfate, filtered, and concentrated carefully to avoid loss of the moderately volatile product. Desired 5-ethynyl-2-methylaniline was isolated as an oil in quantitative yield, contaminated with 10% ether by mass. 1H NMR (400 MHz, CDCl3): 6.99 (d, 1H), 6.85 (dd, 1H), 6.81 (d, 1H), 3.61 (br s, 2H), 2.98 (s, 1H), 2.16 (s, 3H); GCMS for C9H9N: 131 (M+).

Provenance & Evidence