Thionyl Chloride → 3-(Chloromethyl)-5-phenylpyridine

Participants

Reaction Steps

A mixture of 5-phenyl-3-pyridylmethanol (4.50 g) and thionyl chloride (5 ml) was stirred at room temperature for 1 hour. After the reaction mixture was concentrated, saturated aqueous sodium bicarbonate solution was added to the mixture, which was extracted with ethyl acetate. The ethyl acetate layer was washed with saturated aqueous sodium chloride solution, dried (MgSO4), and concentrated. The residue was subjected to silica gel column chromatography to obtain 3-chloromethyl-5-phenylpyridine (4.28 g, yield 86%) as colorless crystals from the fraction eluted with tetrahydrofuran. This was recrystallized from ethyl acetate-hexane. Melting point: 75–76° C.

Provenance & Evidence