4-Hydroxybenzoic Acid → 4-[(Methoxycarbonyl)oxy]benzoic acid

Participants

Reaction Steps

A solution of sodium hydroxide (15 g) in water (400 ml) was chilled to 0° C. in ice. To this the 4-hydroxy benzoic acid (17.9 g, 0.130 mol) was added. Methylchloroformate (20 g, 0.212 mol) was added slowly to prevent the temperature from rising above 5° C. The reaction mixture was stirred at 0°-5° C. for 3 h during which time a white suspension gradually formed. The pH was adjusted to 4-5 with addition of HCl/water (1:1). The voluminous precipitate was filtered off, washed with water and recrystallised from ethanol (200 ml).

Provenance & Evidence