N-benzyl-2-chloro-N-(2-hydroxyethyl)acetamide → 4-Benzylmorpholin-3-one

Participants

Reaction Conditions

Reaction Steps

A solution of N-benzyl-N-(2-hydroxyethyl)chloroacetamide (627.7 g, 2.76 mol) in tert-butanol (0.9 L) is stirred under nitrogen while warming to 25-30° C. Potassium tert-butoxide (2.897 L of a 1M solution in tert-butanol, 2.90 mol, 1.05 eq) is added over 2 hours. The reaction mixture is then stirred at room temperature for 90 minutes. Ice-cold water (6 L) is added and the resultant cloudy solution extracted with ethyl acetate. The combined organic layers are washed with brine, dried over magnesium sulphate and evaporated in vacuo to give a light brown oil (441 g, 84%), which is used in the next stage without further purification; MW 191.23; C11H13NO2; 1H NMR (CDCl3): 7.29-7.40 (5H, m), 4.67 (2H, s), 4.28 (2H, s), 3.87 (2H, t, 5 Hz), 3.31 (2H, t, 5 Hz); LCMS: (12 min method) m/z 192 [M+H]+RT 1.00 min.

Provenance & Evidence