2,4-Bis(1-ethyl-2-methyl-3-indolyl)-4-oxobutanoic acid → 3,5-Bis(1-ethyl-2-methyl-1H-indol-3-yl)furan-2(3H)-one

Participants

Reaction Steps

A mixture of 40.0 g (0.096 mole) of 2,4-bis(1-ethyl-2-methyl-3-indolyl)-4-oxobutanoic acid (prepared as in Example 3, part A) and 450 ml of acetic anhydride was stirred approximately seventeen hours at ambient temperature under an atmosphere of air. The solid that formed was collected by filtration and washed first with acetic anhydride and then with diethyl ether. After drying at 60° C. in vacuo there was obtained 34.0 g of 3,5-bis(1-ethyl-2-methyl-3-indolyl)-2(3H)-furanone (Formula II: R=CH3CH2 ; R1 =CH3 ; Y=H) as a white solid which melted over the range 186°-188° C. with decomposition.

Provenance & Evidence