Benzyl Bromide → 2-(Benzyloxy)-3-methoxybenzaldehyde

Participants

Reaction Steps

A mixture of 196.0 g (1.30 mole) of o-vanillin (Aldrich), 200 g of benzyl bromide (Aldrich), 500 g of anhydrous potassium carbonate and 1,500 mL of absolute ethanol is heated, with stirring, at reflux for 6 hours. After cooling, the supernatant is decanted and the remainder is filtered. The combined filtrate and supernatant is concentrated at reduced pressure to remove solvent. The remaining oil is extracted into 1 L of ether. The ether solution is washed with 500 mL of water, 600 mL of 1% potassium hydroxide solution, and 500 mL of water and then dried (potassium carbonate) and concentrated to give 263.4 g (84% yield) of product; mp 41°-43° C. Reported mp, 43° C. (Chem. Abstr. 62:16110a).

Provenance & Evidence